title: Intermediate-term oncologic outcomes after video-assisted thoracoscopic thymectomy for early-stage thymoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the impact on patient survival of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) thymectomy for the treatment of early-stage thymoma, by comparing the intermediate-term oncologic outcomes with outcomes after open thymectomy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eighty-two patients who underwent complete resection of a Masaoka stage I or II thymoma between November 1998 and December 2011 were reviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The patients included 32 men and 50 women (median age, 57 years; range, 20-90 years), of whom 44 had stage I thymoma and 38 had stage II thymoma. Seventy-one patients underwent VATS, of whom 4 (5.6%) underwent conversion to open thymectomy; the remaining 11 patients underwent planned open thymectomy. Thirty-six patients underwent total thymectomy and 46 underwent partial thymectomy. Operative mortality was nil. The tumor stage, tumor size, and proportion of patients who underwent total thymectomy were not significantly different between the open and VATS thymectomy groups. The median follow-up period was 49 months (VATS, 48 months; open, 52 months). There was a significant difference between the 2 groups for the estimated 5-year overall survival (VATS, 97.0%; open, 79.5%; P=.041) but not in the estimated 5-year recurrence-free survival.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings indicate that the intermediate-term oncologic outcomes after VATS thymectomy for early-stage thymoma are as favorable as outcomes after open thymectomy. Further follow-up is still required to evaluate the long-term outcomes after VATS thymectomy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chest Surgery, Osaka Police Hospital, Osaka, Japan. Electronic address: sak@serenade.plala.or.jp.
authors.forename: Yasushi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sakamaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Chest Surgery, Osaka Police Hospital, Osaka, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomofumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Oda
authors.affiliation: Department of Chest Surgery, Osaka Police Hospital, Osaka, Japan.
authors.forename: Go
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kanazawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Regional Social Management, The Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Yamanashi, Kofu, Japan.
authors.forename: Toshio
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shimokawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Shion Clinic, Osaka, Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsuo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kido
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic Surgery, Kinki University Nara Hospital, Ikoma, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shiono
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001706:Biopsy; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D015996:Survival Rate; D020775:Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted; D013945:Thymoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D013953:Thymus Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D016896:Treatment Outcome