Abstract
The majority of metastatic pleural lesions are caused by malignancies such as bronchogenic carcinoma (40%), breast cancer (20%), lymphoma (10%), and ovarian or gastric carcinomas (5%). However, pleural metastases from thymoma are extremely rare. In this report, we present the 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) imaging findings of a patient with thymoma and extensive pleural metastases. Although biopsy remains the gold standard for diagnosis, it is important to consider high grade thymoma in the differential diagnosis, as extensive pleural involvement observed on 18F-FDG PET/CT imaging can mimic both primary and metastatic pleural malignancies. Recognizing this possibility can assist in more accurate interpretation of imaging findings.
Keywords:
Thymoma, pleura, metastasis, 18FDG, PET/CT
Ethics
Informed Consent: The patient consent was obtained.
Authorship Contributions
Surgical and Medical Practices: M.O.K., B.O.T., Concept: M.O.K., B.O.T., Design: M.O.K., B.O.T., Data Collection or Processing: M.O.K., B.O.T., Analysis or Interpretation: M.O.K., B.O.T., Literature Search: M.O.K., B.O.T., Writing: M.O.K., B.O.T.
Conflict of Interest: No conflicts of interest were declared by the authors.
Financial Disclosure: The authors declare that this study has received no financial support.
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