title: [Surgical therapy of neuroendocrine tumors of the thymus].
abstract: Neuroendocrine tumors of the thymus, also known as thymic carcinoids, are rare tumors of the anterior mediastinum. They occur sporadically or in association with MEN I syndrome. We present five patients (four male, one female; age of first manifestation 19-53 years) who were operated on at our hospital between 1984 and 1995 for neuroendocrine thymic tumors. A hormone-producing tumor presented with Cushing's syndrome in two patients. Two patients had MEN I syndrome. Only in the female patient the primary tumor was confined to the thymus. We found lymph node metastases in three patients and a distant metastasis in one. The neuroendocrine tumors have a high rate of local recurrences and thus we performed 11 operations using a transthoracic or transsternal approach. Since there was no operative mortality and adjuvant therapies are of limited value, we recommend surgery even in case of recurrence.
authors.affiliation: Klinik für Allgemein und Unfallchirurgie, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Cupisti
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dotzenrath
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Simon
authors.forename: P E
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Goretzki
authors.forename: H D
authors.initials: HD
authors.lastname: Röher
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002276:Carcinoid Tumor / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018761:Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia Type 1 / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D011379:Prognosis; D012086:Reoperation; D013934:Thymectomy; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000473:pathology; D013953:Thymus Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
vernacular_title: Chirurgische Therapie neuroendokriner Tumoren des Thymus.