title: An unusual case of superior vena cava syndrome caused by the intravascular invasion of an invasive thymoma.
abstract: Superior vena cava syndrome (SVCS) is usually caused by extrinsic compression or invasion of the superior vena cava (SVC) by malignant tumors involving mediastinal structures. Although thymomas are well-known causes of SVCS, cases of SVCS caused by malignant thymomas protruding into adjacent vessels draining the SVC with thrombosis have been very rarely reported worldwide. We experienced a 39-year-old female patient with SVCS that developed after the direct invasion of the left brachiocephalic vein (LBCV) and SVC by an anterior mediastinal mass with a high maximum standardized uptake value on the chest computed tomography (CT) and positron emission tomography-CT. Based on these results, she underwent en bloc resection of the tumor, including removal of the involved vessels, and was eventually diagnosed as having a type B2 thymoma permeating into the LBCV and SVC. We present this case as a very rare form of SVCS caused by an invasive thymoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Hyung Joon
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Sun Young
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Woo Hee
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Do Hyun
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Do Hyoung
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Pil Won
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Seo
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Mi-Hyun
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Wonae
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Nuclear Medicine, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Jai Hyuen
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Dankook University College of Medicine, Cheonan, Korea.
authors.forename: Doh Hyung
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Kim
keywords: Positron-Emission Tomography; Superior Vena Cava Syndrome; Thymoma