[Treatment for thymus-related malignant tumors]

Surgery is the first-line therapy for thymoma. Postoperative radiotherapy should be given for all invasive thymomas, followed by chemotherapy in some cases. Even if the resection is not complete, surgery is effective therapy because most thymomas are local and slow growing. Multidrug chemotherapy including cisplatin is effective against thymoma. Thymic cancer is histologically varied. Surgery is only one effective therapy for thymic cancer. Although no definitive chemotherapy regimen for thymic cancer has yet been established, we feel that the cisplatin, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine 4-drug combination regimen is effective in thymic cancer patients. Seminoma out of mediastinal germ cell tumor (GCT) is expected to have a good prognosis after surgery and radio-/chemotherapy. Although the prognosis for those with nonseminomatous GCT has recently improved due to chemotherapy and surgery, it is still poor.