title: True thymic hyperplasia associated with thymic hemorrhage in an adult patient.
abstract: A case of true thymic hyperplasia (TTH) associated with thymic hemorrhage (TH) was observed in a 22-year-old male patient who presented with persistent cough and thoracic pain due to an anterior mediastinal mass. The diagnosis of TTH was supported by the observation that the mediastinal mass was essentially composed of histologically normal thymic lobules with preserved cortico-medullary differentiation. The TTH tissue presented multiple areas of hemorrhage associated with the presence of large, tortuous, abnormal vessels in the thymic stroma. Foci of spindle cell proliferations resembling an epitheliod hemangioma were also seen. This finding raises the possibility that vascular malformations, perhaps due to an abnormal growth of the thymus, may be responsible for some cases of TH associated with TTH.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Medicine and Pathology, II Faculty of Medicine, Sant'Andrea Hospital, University La Sapienza, Rome, Italy. emanuela.pilozzi@uniroma1.it
authors.forename: Emanuela
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pilozzi
authors.forename: Fabrizio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Del Prete
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: De Dominicis
authors.forename: Erino Angelo
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Rendina
authors.forename: Luigi P
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Ruco
mesh_terms: D006470:Hemorrhage / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008206:Lymphatic Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000473:pathology*; D013952:Thymus Hyperplasia / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D055815:Young Adult