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Multicenter Institutional Experience of Surgically Resected Thymic Epithelial Tumors (TETs): An Observational Report on Behalf of F.O.N.I.C.A.P. (Forza Operativa Nazionale Interdisciplinare Contro il Cancro del Polmone)

  • Endocrine Tumors
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Annals of Surgical Oncology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

An Erratum to this article was published on 11 June 2013

Abstract

Background

This multicenter analysis evaluated patient outcome and clinical pathologic features of thymic epithelial tumors after complete surgical resection and adjuvant treatment.

Methods

Histologic classification and clinical staging were performed according to WHO classification and Masaoka staging system, respectively.

Results

We analyzed 62 patients, 20 (32 %) of whom had myasthenia at diagnosis. Clinical and pathologic staging was as follows: 31 (50 %) and 30 (48 %) patients had stage I disease, 19 (30 %) and 22 (35 %) stage II, 5 (8 %) and 3 (6 %) stage III, 2 (4 %) and 2 (3 %) stage IVa, and 5 (8 %) and 5 (8 %) stage IVb, respectively. Histologic examination revealed 11 (19%) type A tumors, 19 (30%) type AB tumors, 7 (12 %) type B1 tumors, 11 (17 %) type B2 tumors, 11 (17 %) type B3 tumors, and 3 (5 %) type C tumors. Adjuvant therapies comprised chemotherapy in 3 (5 %) patients and radiotherapy in 16 (26 %) patients. Median follow-up was 71 months (range 1–145). DFS and OS at 48, 60, and 72 months were 89 and 89 %, 86 and 97 %, and 95% and 92%, respectively. Myasthenia at the onset of disease (P = 0.18 for DFS; P = 0.97) and tumor size >5 cm (P = 0.94 for DFS; P = 0.56) were not prognostic factors.

Conclusions

TETs are rare and indolent tumors. Complete surgical resection followed by adjuvant therapies, such as chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy, in patients at risk of recurrence show very good DFS and OS results, even in cases with radically resected pleural-pulmonary metastases.

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Acknowledgment

The authors thank GIPO (Gruppo Interdisciplinare di Pneumo-Oncologia) for coordinating the collection of clinical data. They also thank Ursula Elbling for editing this manuscript.

Disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest or financial ties to disclose.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Oncology, Cervesi Hospital, Cattolica, RN, Italy

    Giovenzio Genestreti MD

  2. Department of Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital, Parma, Italy

    Luca Ampollini MD, Luigi Rolli MD & Michele Rusca MD

  3. Department of Medical Oncology, IRCCS Istituto Scientifico Romagnolo per lo Studio e la Cura dei Tumori (IRST-IRCCS), Meldola, Italy

    Marco Angelo Burgio MD, Luca Burgio Salvatore MD & Dino Amadori MD

  4. Department of Thoracic Surgery, Morgagni-Pierantoni Hospital, Forlì, Italy

    Stefano Sanna MD

  5. Unit of Biostatistics and Clinical Trials, IRST-IRCCS, Meldola, Italy

    Emanuela Scarpi MSc & Manuela Monti BSc

  6. Department of Medical Oncology, University Hospital, Verona, Italy

    Luciana Giannone BSc & Antonio Santo MD

  7. Department of Thoracic Surgery, S. Carlo Borromeo Hospital, Milan, Italy

    Maurizio Mezzetti MD

  8. Department of Medical Oncology, Santa Maria delle Croci Hospital, Ravenna, Italy

    Claudia Casanova MD

  9. Department of Clinical Oncology, Maggiore della Carità Hospital, Novara, Italy

    Roberta Buosi MD

  10. Radiology Unit, IRST-IRCCS, Meldola, Italy

    Giampaolo Gavelli MD

Authors
  1. Giovenzio Genestreti MD
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  2. Luca Ampollini MD
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  3. Marco Angelo Burgio MD
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  8. Luca Burgio Salvatore MD
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  9. Luciana Giannone BSc
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  10. Antonio Santo MD
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  13. Roberta Buosi MD
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  14. Michele Rusca MD
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  15. Dino Amadori MD
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Giovenzio Genestreti MD.

Additional information

Giovenzio Genestreti and Luca Ampollini contributed equally to this work.

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Genestreti, G., Ampollini, L., Burgio, M.A. et al. Multicenter Institutional Experience of Surgically Resected Thymic Epithelial Tumors (TETs): An Observational Report on Behalf of F.O.N.I.C.A.P. (Forza Operativa Nazionale Interdisciplinare Contro il Cancro del Polmone). Ann Surg Oncol 20, 2958–2963 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1245/s10434-013-3018-2

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