Mediastinum Flashcards
Tumors of anterior mediastinum (8).
Thymoma, thymic cyst.
Lymphoma.
Thyroid lesions.
Parathyroid adenoma.
Germ-cell tumors.
Paraganglioma.
Hemangioma.
Lipoma.
Tumors of the posterior mediastinum (2).
Neurogenic tumors.
Gastroenteric cyst.
Tumors of the middle mediastinum (3).
Pericardial cyst.
Bronchial cyst.
Lymphoma.
Thymic cyst: Most common location.
Anterior mediastinum.
Acquired thymic cyst: Associations (5).
Lymphomas, esp. Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Germ-cell tumors.
Other thymic tumors.
Congenital syphilis.
Previous thoracotomy.
Thymic cyst: Types based on gross pathology (2).
Unilocular: Thin wall; serous contents; congenital.
Multilocular: Thick wall; thick, turbid contents; acquired.
Thymic cyst: Lining (2).
Unilocular: Flat or cuboidal cells.
Multilocular: Variable but usually lined by flat cells.
Thymic cyst: Wall (3).
Unilocular: Usually no thymic remnants.
Multilocular: Thymic remnants.
Both: Inflammation, lymphoid follicles, cholesterol clefts; no differentiated soft tissue.
Cystic hygroma: Histology.
Cavernous spaces lined by flattened endothelium.
Collagenous stroma.
Thymic cyst vs. cystic thymoma.
Cystic thymoma: Thymomatous portion consists of disorganized thymic epithelium and T lymphocytes.
Bronchial cyst:
A. Age group.
B. Clinical sign.
C. Location.
A. Adults.
B. Movement with respiration.
C. Attached to trachea or main bronchus.
Bronchial cyst:
A. Lining.
B. Wall.
C. Contents.
A. Respiratory columnar epithelium, sometimes with squamous metaplasia.
B. Smooth muscle and cartilage.
C. Mucinous.
Esophageal cyst:
A. Synonym.
B. Age group.
C. Location.
A. Esophageal duplication.
B. Children and young adults.
C. At level of mid-esophagus.
Esophageal cyst:
A. Lining.
B. Wall.
C. Contents.
A. Squamous or columnar mucosa.
B. Double layer of smooth muscle is at least focally present.
C. Mucinous.
Enteric cyst:
A. Synonym.
B. Age group.
A. Foregut duplication cyst.
B. Infants and children.
Enteric cyst: Clinical associations (2).
Male sex.
Congenital anomalies of vertebrae, intestines, heart.
Enteric cyst: Location.
Posterior mediastinum, attached to vertebral column.
Enteric cyst:
A. Lining.
B. Wall.
A. Resembles lining of stomach, intestine, colon, or esophagus, complete with lamina propria.
B. Muscularis mucosae and muscularis propria; may contain ganglion cells.
Enteric cyst: Possible complications (3).
Respiratory symptoms.
Dysphagia due to compression.
Hemoptysis due to gastric acid.
Mesothelial cyst: Clinical presentation.
Usually asymptomatic.
Mesothelial cyst:
A. Lining.
B. Wall.
C. Contents.
A. Mesothelium.
B. Fibrous tissue; no smooth muscle.
C. Serous or (in some pericardial cysts) mucinous.
True thymic hyperplasia:
A. Age groups.
B. Associations (3).
A. Children; adults exposed to chemotherapy.
B. Myasthenia gravis, hyperthyroidism, other autoimmune diseases.
True thymic hyperplasia: Histology.
Same as that of normal thymus, but in an enlarged gland.
Thymic follicular hyperplasia: Associations.
Autoimmune diseases.
Thymic follicular hyperplasia:
A. Gross pathology.
B. Histology.
A. Usually normal size and weight.
B. Many follicles with germinal centers containing B lymphocytes.
Thymic follicular hyperplasia vs. normal thymic medulla.
Normal thymic medulla contains Hassall’s corpuscles.
Thymolipoma:
A. Clinical presentation.
B. Histology.
A. Dyspnea and cough due to compression.
B. Mature fat mixed with strands of normal thymic tissue.
Thymolipoma vs. thymic involution.
The involuted thymus is normal in size or small for the patient’s age.
Thymolipoma vs. lipoma.
Lipoma contains no thymic tissue.
Thymoma: Locations.
Typical: Anterior or superior mediastinum.
Others: Thymic rests elsewhere in the mediastinum or in the thyroid gland.
Thymoma: Association with myasthenia gravis (2).
About 10% of patients with MG have thymoma.
About 25-50% of patients with thymoma have MG.
Thymoma: Other associations (4).
Lambert-Eaton syndrome.
Pure red-cell aplasia.
Hypogammaglobulinemia.
Collagen-vascular diseases.
Thymoma: Most important predictor of clinical course.
Presence or absence of invasion of adjacent structures.
Thymoma: Staging system.
Stage I: Completely encapsulated.
Stage IIa: Microscopic breach of capsule.
Stage IIb: Macroscopic invasion into fat or pleura.
Stage III: Macroscopic invasion into pericardium, great vessels, or lung.
Stage IVa: Pericardial or pleural implants.
Stage IVb: Hematogenous or lymphatic spread.
Thymoma: Cellular components.
Neoplastic thymic epithelial cells:
− Oval or spindled, with bland nucleus.
− Epithelioid, with a vesicular nucleus and a large nucleolus.
Non-neoplastic T lymphocytes.
Thymoma, WHO type A: Histology.
Composed mainly of bland spindle cells.
Thymoma, WHO type AB: Histology.
Bland spindle cells mixed with many lymphocytes.
Thymoma, WHO type B: Definition.
A thymoma that consists mainly of epithelial cells, with variable numbers of mature and immature T lymphocytes.
Thymoma, WHO type B1: Histology.
Many lymphocytes and few epithelial cells.
The epithelial cells show minimal atypia.
Thymoma, WHO type B2: Histology.
Lymphocytes and epithelial cells are about equal in proportion.
The epithelial cells show mild to moderate atypia.
Thymoma, WHO type B3: Histology.
Few lymphocytes and many epithelial cells.
The epithelial cells show significant atypia, discrete cell borders, and rare mitotic figures.
WHO classification of thymomas: Correlation with histologic regions of the thymus.
Type A: Medullary.
Type AB: Mixed.
Type B: Cortical.
Thymoma: Histologic predictors of worse prognosis (4).
Predominance of epithelial cells.
Atypia of epithelial cells.
Loss of fibrous compartmentalization.
Loss of perivascular spaces.
Thymoma: Immunohistochemistry of the epithelial cells.
Positive: Pancytokeratin; p63, PAX8 (nuclear).
Thymoma: Flow cytometry.
In a lymphocyte-rich thymoma, flow cytometry can contribute to a misdiagnosis of lymphoblastic lymphoma.
Thymoma vs. lymphoblastic lymphoma.
Lymphoblastic lymphoma:
- Younger patients.
- Clonal T lymphocytes.
Spindle-cell thymoma vs. other spindle-cell tumors.
Spindle-cell sarcomas and solitary fibrous tumor do not express cytokeratin.
Thymic carcinoma: Associations (2).
May arise from thymoma.
Does not cause myasthenia gravis or pure red-cell aplasia.
Thymic carcinoma: Relative incidence.
Les common than secondary tumors of the thymus.
Primary thymic carcinoma is a diagnosis of exclusion.
Thymic carcinoma: Gross pathology (2).
Usually no capsule.
May be desmoplastic but has none of the fibrous septa of thymoma.