Carcinoid Tumor of the Thymus- A Case Report and Review of the Literature

Carcinoid tumors of the thymus are rare, and comprise a wide spectrum of lesions ranging from well-differentiated to poorly-differentiated neoplasms.Clinically, they are commonly associated with endocrine abnormalities. We report a 45-year-old man presenting with anterior chest pain and tightness lasting for half a year before admission. Moreover, no endocrine abnormalities were noted clinically. The image finding disclosed a mass with an irregular contour, about 8.7 x 3.9 cm, in the anterior mediastinum. Ultrasound-guided biopsy demonstrated a thymic carcinoid tumor. The patient underwent radical surgical resection with adjuvant chemotherapy, and followed up at the outpatient clinic. Thymic carcinoid tumors have a tendency toward local invasion and distant metastasis, and should be included in the differential diagnosis of anterior mediastinal tumors.