THYMIC NEUROENDOCRINE CARCINOMA (CARCINOID)

• Mediastinal or thymic carcinoid tumors are extremely rare and only a few small series have been reported in the literature.

• is a rare type of thymic epithelial tumor. more aggressive biologic behavior and poor prognosis.

• Presentation:

1. asymptomatic,
2. associated with symptoms related to local growth, or
3. part of a MEN syndrome and can produce endocrinopathy, especially Cushing's syndrome.

• Treatments: An aggressive surgical approach with complete initial excision of the tumor and of subsequent recurrences, along with radiation and probably chemotherapy, is the best available treatment today. JW Lewis Jr, MW Lee and NA Silverman; Carcinoid tumors of the thymus, The Annals of Thoracic Surgery 1990 , Vol 50, 58-61

• Thymic carcinoids, have a low cure rate averaging 10–15% and thus have a poorer overall prognosis than bronchial carcinoids.