Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is currently mainly used for the treatment of early thymic tumors. In recent years, minimally invasive thymic surgery has been rapidly promoted at home and abroad. However, because of the low incidence of thymic tumors, the unbalanced experience of doctors, there are still many issues worthy of discussion in MIS. Standard MIS must follow similar oncological and resection principles. This paper involves the definitions of minimally invasive thymic surgery and general principles that should be adhered to when performing MIS for thymic malignances.
[Abstract]Thymectomy is the main treatment for thymoma and other thymic diseases. But the incidence of non-therapeutic thymectomy is high due to the difficulty in the differential diagnosis of anterior mediastinum lesions. Formerly, it was believed that the thymus gradually degraded and lost function with aging, and the preservation of the thymus was not valued. Recent studies have found that the removal of the thymus at all ages has adverse effects on overall health and leads to a significant increase in the risk of autoimmune diseases, malignancy, and all-cause mortality. Therefore, unnecessary thymectomy should be avoided. This article reviews the influence of thymectomy, including the changes of immunological indexes and clinical prognosis, and further discusses the current situation and avoidance methods of non-therapeutic thymectomy.
The announcement of the 9th edition of TNM staging system for thymic tumors was one of the highlights at the World Conference on Lung Cancer 2023. The revision, based on a larger and more detailed database, provides changes and confirmation from the last system. The 9th edition of TNM staging system aims to balance statistical significance and clinical feasibility. The birth of an improved TNM staging system heralds the changes that will follow in clinical practice and scientific research.