Thymus Cancer - Symptoms, Stages, Diagnosis & Treatment

The thymus gland, located in the chest between lungs, creates white blood cells called T lymphocytes. This makes it an essential part of the human body. However, cancerous glands forming in the thymus can be a severe threat against this. Thymus cancer, although rare, usually starts from thymic epithelial cells and slowly spreads through the body.

Are you worried about the future occurrence of thymus cancer or undergoing its treatment? Then, read till the end to discover all the details and prevention procedures!

What Is Thymus Cancer?

Thymus cancer develops in the thymus, which is a small organ located just behind the breast bone (sternum) in the chest. It is a vital part of the immune system of the body. Thymomas and thymic carcinomas are basically tumours starting from the thymic epithelial cells. These tumour cells grow slowly and rarely spread beyond the thymus. People suffering from thymoma often face problems with their immune system.

There are no specific risk factors responsible for thymus cancer causes. However, healthcare researchers have found that DNA changes occur more often in the thymus cells than in the other cells, contributing to this disease. In addition, some other studies show a possible connection between the exposure of radiation to the upper chest areas and that of thymus cancer. It is commonly seen in middle-aged adults and mostly among people in their 70s.

What Are the Symptoms of Thymus Cancer?

If you face some symptoms such as the following, you should consider visiting a doctor.

A persistent cough
Shortness of breath
Hoarse voice
Chest pain
Swelling in the face, upper body or neck

When individuals visit healthcare centres for this issue, doctors examine to diagnose whether these are symptoms of thymus gland cancer. For this, they follow a routine diagnosis process. For example, it might include the following procedures. For this, they follow a routine diagnosis process. For example, it might include the following procedures.

What Are the Stages in Thymus Cancer?

While learning about thymus cancer, you may wonder about its stages. Stages in this cancer are determined following the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) TNM system's staging system. The three aspects of this staging system are as follows.

Tumour (T)- This determines the tumour’s size when cancer has started growing into the nearby structures.
Nodes (N)- In this stage, cancer spreads to superficial or deep lymph nodes in the body.
Metastasis (M)- This is the final stage whereby the cancer cells spread to the metastasis or distant areas, such as lung lining or heart.

Staging	Stage grouping	Description
I	T1a/T1b, N0, M0	In this stage, the cancer cells do not spread to the outer layer of the thymus. Instead, it might spread to the nearby fatty tissues, but the mediastinal pleura remains untouched. In T1b, cancer spreads to the mediastinal pleura as well. However, it does not spread to lymph nodes (N0) or distant sites (M0).
II	T2, N0, M0	This is the second stage, whereby cancer grows into nearby fatty tissues and pericardium. However, it does not spread to lymph nodes (N0) or distant sites (M0).
IIIA	T3, N0, M0	In T3, cancer grows into nearby tissues and organs. For example, it can spread to the lungs, blood vessels and phrenic nerves. However, it still does not spread to lymph nodes (N0) or distant sites (M0).
IVA	Any T, N0/N1, M0/M1a	In the first part of stage 4 thymus cancer, cancer cells may or may not spread to the nearby tissues or organs. However, it usually affects the lymph nodes in front of the chest cavity (N1). It may also not spread to the lymph nodes in some cases (N0). It is yet to spread to the distant organs (M0). However, it might spread to the pleura or the pericardium (M1a) in some cases.
IVB	Any T, N2, M0/M1b	Cancer may or may not have grown into tissues or organs. It may or may not enter the lymph nodes (Any N). However, in the case of N2, cancer enters deep in the lymph nodes. It may or may not affect the pleura or the pericardium (M0). In other cases, cancer spreads to the lungs or other distant organs (M1b).

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How Is Thymus Cancer Diagnosed?

Before proceeding further, a generic concern might be addressed related to the symptoms of thymus cancer. Usually, thymus cancer is extremely rare. Moreover, most patients hardly find any significant symptoms when diagnosed initially.

1. Medical History and Physical Examinations

Doctors usually rely on medical history if they suspect thymus cancer. Therefore, you might get questions about any trace of this disease in your family in the past. They can also ask about your overall health conditions.

Moreover, physical examinations are also common in this regard. For example, patients having thymus cancer usually have fullness in the neck area, and a doctor can feel that with the help of a physical examination. Likewise, they suspect thymomas if they find that your symptoms are related to hypogammaglobulinemia, myasthenia gravis, or red cell aplasia.

2. Chest X-ray

It is an imaging test that doctors might ask you to do if they suspect thymus cancer in the middle of the chest. It is an energy beam sent through the body in a film generating pictures of specific body parts and organs. However, sometimes thymomas are small and might not be visible in an X-ray report. In such cases, doctors might require CT scans.

3. Computed Tomography Scan

CT scans use x-rays to create cross-sectional images of the body, which are more detailed than regular x-rays. Such scans create clear images of the soft tissues and organs in the body, making it easier to notice even the smallest thymomas. Doctors can also suggest CT-guided needle biopsy when they suspect tumours or metastasis.

4. Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scan

Doctors conduct MRI scans with a similar purpose as CT scans to create pictures of the soft tissues and organs. However, instead of using x-rays like CT scans, MRI scans use strong magnets and radio waves. Doctors suggest this type of scan for patients who cannot go through CT scans because of medical reasons, such as resistance to IV contrast. In addition, the images generated in MRI scans help doctors take a closer look into the chest and nodes.

5. Positron Emission Tomography Scan

Doctors usually inject a slightly radioactive form of sugar while conducting a PET scan. It collects in the cancer cells of the body. They then use a specific camera to take pictures of the radioactivity areas of the body. While such images might not be as detailed as CT or MRI scans, they can be helpful to look for possible areas of cancer cell spread. It can be useful if cancer is diagnosed, but its location is unclear.

What Are the Treatment Processes for Thymus Cancer?

It goes without saying that although rare, thymus cancer can be highly harmful to human beings. In this regard, if one wonders, "is thymus cancer curable?” The answer can be complicated. Patients diagnosed with thymoma and thymic carcinoma can have different types of treatments. While some are standard treatments, the others are under clinical trial. Recently, following five ways of treatment for thymus cancer have been observed.

1. Surgery

It is a common treatment of thymus gland cancer . Doctors use surgery to remove the tumour while treating thymoma. In case of malignancy, doctors remove all the cancer cells visible at the time of the surgery. After this, the patient receives radiation therapy to remove and kill the cancer cells left in the body.

2. Radiation Therapy

It is another popular cancer treatment therapy worldwide. It uses high-energy x-rays and other radiations and tries to kill the cancer cells. They can also help fight them to spread further in the body in internal radiation. On the other hand, in external radiation, a machine is used from outside to send radiation towards the body's organs with cancer cells.

3. Chemotherapy

It is a standard cancer treatment method, which depends on drugs to prevent cancer cells from spreading. It either kills the cells or stops them from growing further. This procedure takes place in the form of medication or injected through veins. Doctors also use Chemotherapy for shrinking the tumour before thymus cancer surgery. In addition, it helps reach out to the cancer cells faster.

4. Hormone Therapy

This treatment targets the hormones that might trigger cancer cells to grow. It removes such hormones or blocks their actions. If tests show that cancer cell location has chances of hormone attachment, they use this therapy.

5. Targeted Therapy

This type of treatment is mainly used to identify and attack specific cancer cells in the body. It is often preferable as it is less powerful than Chemotherapy and radiation therapy, thereby causing lesser harm and side effects. In the case of thymus cancer, two types of targeted therapy are used, including Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitors.

What Is the Prevention Method for Thymus Cancer?

Now that you know the possible risks of thymus cancer, a common question is “how to prevent thymus cancer”. However, the answer to this has not been satisfactory from healthcare researchers. As they are unaware of the factors causing thymus cancer, they have yet to develop ways to prevent it. However, with further research and advancement of technology in the future, this answer will probably be available to a global population.

The life expectancy rates for thymus cancer have been dynamic. However, based on people diagnosed between 2010 and 2016, the following rates can be standard. However, it only applies when diagnosed in the first stage of cancer.

Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Stage	5-Year Relative Survival Rate
Localized	93%
Regional	79%
Distant	40%
All SEER stages	71%

Thus, it is safe to say that thymus cancer is rare yet life-threatening. As the thymus is an essential organ responsible for forming specific white blood cells, having cancer on these nodes can be seriously dangerous. While researchers have yet to prevent it, medical science has been advanced in treating diseases, especially when diagnosed in the first stage.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Can smoking cause thymus cancer?

There has not been any research to prove that smoking can cause thymus cancer. However, it is often considered one of the risk factors behind the disease.

Can you live without the thymus gland?

A person can survive without a thymus gland. However, they need to understand that thymus controls all the immune cells. Without thymus, a human body will not produce T cells for fighting infections in white blood cells and can therefore develop serious risks in living.