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Radiographics 2021 Jun 4:200180. Epub 2021 Jun 4.

From the Pediatric Radiology Section (D.M.B., E.M.C.) and Thoracic Radiology Section (J.P.L.), American Institute for Radiologic Pathology, Silver Spring, Md; Department of Radiology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 3401 Civic Center Blvd, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (D.M.B., J.B.R., A.K.); Department of Radiology, George Washington University, Washington, DC (J.P.L.); Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Greenville, SC (A.R.H.); and Department of Radiology, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio (E.M.C).

Most pediatric masses in the chest are located in the mediastinum. These masses are often initially detected incidentally on chest radiographs in asymptomatic children, although some patients may present with respiratory symptoms. At chest radiography, the mediastinum has been anatomically divided into anterior, middle, and posterior compartments. Read More

Kyobu Geka 2021 Jun;74(6):472-475

Department of Thoracic Surgery, Shinko Hospital, Kobe, Japan.

An 70-year-old woman was reffered to our hospital to examine for a left lower lobe atelectasis on chest X-ray. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed the mass in middle mediastinum. The video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery( VATS) was performed to establish diagnosis and treat. Read More

Adv Anat Pathol 2021 May 27. Epub 2021 May 27.

Department of Pathology, Yeungnam University College of Medicine, Daegu, South Korea Department of Pathology and Genomic Medicine, Houston Methodist Hospital, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, Houston, TX.

Mesenchymal tumors of the mediastinum are a heterogenous group of rare tumors with divergent lineages. Mediastinal mesenchymal tumors are diagnostically challenging due to their diversity and morphologic overlap with nonmesenchymal lesions arising in the mediastinum. Accurate histologic diagnosis is critical for appropriate patient management and prognostication. Read More

Khirurgiia (Mosk) 2021 (5):25-31

Aleksandrov National Center of Oncology and Medical Radiology, Lesnoy, Belarus.

Objective: To improve postoperative outcomes in patients with mediastinal neurogenic tumors by using of minimally invasive surgical approaches.

Material And Methods: A retrospective analysis included 108 patients who underwent surgery for mediastinal neurogenic tumors for the period 2001-2019. Short-term outcomes of conventional and minimally invasive (VATS, supraclavicular approach and their combination with laminectomy) surgeries were analyzed. Read More

Respir Med Case Rep 2021 19;33:101396. Epub 2021 Mar 19.

Pulmonology Department, Taher Sfar Hospital, 5100, Mahdia, Tunisia.

Schwannomas are uncommon benign nerve sheath tumors and often arise in the posterior mediastinum and costovertebral angle. However, endobronchial schwannomas are rare. In fact, there are only a few reported cases in the literature. Read More

Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg 2021 May;32(5):737-743

Department of Thoracic Surgery, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.

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Objectives: Mediastinal neurogenic tumours are uncommon and often benign neoplasms mostly located in the posterior mediastinum and usually diagnosed incidentally. We reviewed our results after surgical resection. We compared patient characteristics and tumour nature between children and adults. Read More

Int J Surg Case Rep 2021 Feb 16;79:251-254. Epub 2021 Jan 16.

Klinik für Thoraxchirurgie, Stadtkrankenhaus Delmenhorst, Wildeshauser Str. 92, D-27753 Delmenhorst, Germany. Electronic address:

Introduction And Importance: Diagnosis and treatment of rare diseases are challenging because experience and evidence are limited. Primary tracheal tumors have a low prevalence but awareness of these is important to avoid misdiagnoses. We present a first case of a tracheal microcystic reticular schwannoma in which diagnosis and treatment recommendations were revised several times resulting in months of anxious uncertainty for the patient before complete resection and extensive histopathologic examination were performed. Read More

Int J Clin Oncol 2021 Feb 20;26(2):284-295. Epub 2020 Nov 20.

Department of Gastroenterology, Taihe Hospital, Hubei University of Medicine, 32 South Renmin Road, Shiyan, 442000, Hubei, People's Republic of China.

Objective: Esophageal schwannoma (ES) are rare and mostly benign neurogenic tumors. The clinical misdiagnosis rate of it is high. In this study, the clinicopathologic features of ES in mainland China were studied to better understand the disease and improve the diagnosis and treatment rate. Read More

In Vivo 2020 Nov-Dec;34(6):3527-3532

"Carol Davila" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania.

Background/aim: Thoracic neurogenic tumors are most frequently located in the posterior part of the mediastinum or on the chest wall, along the intercostal nerves. Schwannomas are very well tolerated for a long period, until the tumor reaches a large size and compression of the neighbouring mediastinal organs, chest wall or spine appears. The purpose of this article was to present a case of a giant right forth intercostal nerve Schwannoma, completely resected by a right antero-lateral thoracotomy. Read More

Medicine (Baltimore) 2020 Sep;99(38):e21765

Department of Urology, First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China.

Introduction: Neurogenic tumors are the most frequent neoplasms of the lower posterior mediastinum. Traditionally, lower posterior mediastinal tumors are excised by video-assisted thoracic surgery. However, the available robotic treatment for the lower posterior mediastinum tumors to date are rare. Read More

Korean J Radiol 2021 01 11;22(1):139-154. Epub 2020 Aug 11.

Department of Radiology, Chonnam National University Hospital, Gwangju, Korea.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become a crucial tool for evaluating mediastinal masses considering that several lesions that appear indeterminate on computed tomography and radiography can be differentiated on MRI. Using a three-compartment model to localize the mass and employing a basic knowledge of MRI, radiologists can easily diagnose mediastinal masses. Here, we review the use of MRI in evaluating mediastinal masses and present the images of various mediastinal masses categorized using the International Thymic Malignancy Interest Group's three-compartment classification system. Read More

Jpn J Radiol 2021 Jan 18;39(1):15-31. Epub 2021 Jan 18.

Department of Radiology, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, 1 Kawasumi Mizuho-cho Mizuho-ku, Nagoya, 467-8601, Japan.

Lesions in the middle and posterior mediastinum are relatively rare, but there are some useful radiological clues that can be used to diagnose them precisely. It is useful to determine the affected mediastinal compartment and the locations of the main thoracic nerves on medical images for diagnosing such mediastinal lesions. Neurogenic tumors can occur in the middle mediastinum, although they generally arise as posterior mediastinal tumors. Read More

Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2020 Jul 11. Epub 2020 Jul 11.

Division of Thoracic Surgery, European Institute of Oncology, IRCCS, Milan, Italy.

Background:  Intrathoracic neurogenic tumors (INTs) are uncommon neoplasms arising from nerve tissues. We report our single-center experience in treating these rare INTs.

Methods:  Using a prospective institutional database, clinical, surgical, and pathological records of patients receiving resection of INT between May 1998 and June 2018 were analyzed. Read More

Semin Diagn Pathol 2020 Jul 16;37(4):187-198. Epub 2020 May 16.

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Markey Cancer Center, University of Kentucky, 800 Rose Street, MS 117, Lexington, KY 40536, USA. Electronic address:

The mediastinum is a complex anatomic region that can pose many diagnostic challenges on fine-needle aspiration (FNA) and core needle biopsy (CNB). With the recent technological advancements in EBUS-TBNA and EUS-guided procedures, FNA/CNB is being increasingly utilized to obtain the initial and, in many cases, the only diagnosis. As a result, it is imperative to have an understanding of the pearls and pitfalls associated with both the more common and rarer malignancies that occur at this site. Read More

Semin Diagn Pathol 2020 Jul 21;37(4):179-186. Epub 2020 May 21.

Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.

Neurogenic tumors represent a broad ill-defined category of neoplasms that includes tumors of Schwann cell and/or neuroblastic derivation, as well as neoplasms that typically develop in the central nervous system, but rarely present in ectopic sites including the mediastinum. Neurogenic tumors may occur at many different anatomic sites, but the mediastinum represents a uniquely challenging site given the complex anatomy. Additionally, some of these neoplasms may present with multicentric involvement in the context of genetic syndromes, including NF1, NF2 and schwanomatosis. Read More

Diagn Cytopathol 2020 Aug 12;48(8):769-772. Epub 2020 May 12.

Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.

Ganglioneuromas are rare benign tumors that arise from the sympathetic nerve fibers and represent the final maturation stage of neuroblast tumors. The most common sites of involvement in the body include posterior mediastinum, followed by retroperitoneum, adrenal gland, and soft tissues of the head and neck. In the mediastinum, this tumor is most frequently located in posterior compartment, together with other neurogenic tumors. Read More

BMC Surg 2020 Mar 5;20(1):45. Epub 2020 Mar 5.

Department of Thoracic Surgery, Tokyo Women's Medical University, 8-1 Kawada-cho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, 162-8666, Japan.

Background: Robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (RATS) is useful for surgery in the apical region of the chest cavity, as it narrows towards the head. Here, we describe a nonfunctional, rib-invasive paraganglioma arising in the posterior mediastinum that was successfully removed using RATS combined with chest wall resection.

Case Presentation: A 31-year-old woman presented with a posterior mediastinal mass on chest computed tomography (CT) scan during a medical check-up 2 years prior. Read More

Cureus 2020 Jan 22;12(1):e6738. Epub 2020 Jan 22.

Internal Medicine, Clinica Medellin Occidente, Medellin, COL.

A hibernoma is an uncommon benign soft tissue tumor composed of brown adipose cells; the mediastinal location as presentation is scarce, with only six cases previously reported. The diagnosis of hibernoma is challenging and must be made based on the clinical, radiographic, and cytologic features. Here we present a 33-year-old woman without any relevant medical history presented for outpatient evaluation of a dry cough persisting for three months, and the X-rays revealed a dense well-defined mass with smooth borders in the left upper posterior mediastinum. Read More

Kyobu Geka 2019 Dec;72(13):1072-1075

Department of Thoracic Surgery, Hyogo Cancer Center, Akashi, Japan.

A 69-year-old man with hypertension was referred for an abnormal shadow detected on chest computed tomography(CT) at a medical checkup. Enhanced CT showed a highly enhanced posterior mediastinal tumor of 34×27 mm. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a low signal intensity on T1-weighted images and high signal intensity on T2-weighted images. Read More

J Thorac Oncol 2020 04 20;15(4):568-579. Epub 2019 Dec 20.

The Chaim Sheba Medical Center, affiliated with the Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.

Introduction: Mediastinal lesions are uncommon; studies on their distribution are, in general, small and from a single institution. Furthermore, these studies are usually based on pathology or surgical databases and, therefore, miss many lesions that did not undergo biopsy or resection. Our aim was to identify the distribution of lesions in the mediastinum in a large international, multi-institutional cohort. Read More

Caspian J Intern Med 2019 ;10(4):468-471

Department of Pathology, Ayatollah Rouhani Hospital, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, Iran.

Background: Schwannoma is a peripheral nerve sheath tumor originating from schwann cells. It is the most common neurogenic tumor of the posterior mediastinum. Pleural effusion is a rare presentation of benign schwannoma and it is mainly related to malignant tumors. Read More

Kardiochir Torakochirurgia Pol 2019 Oct 28;16(3):109-113. Epub 2019 Oct 28.

Chest Diseases Clinics, Medicalpark Elazığ Hospital, Elazığ, Turkey.

Aim: In this study, we aimed to evaluate the results of our patients with a primary mediastinal mass and the surgical techniques applied in our clinic retrospectively.

Material And Methods: Between March 2015 and March 2019, the results and treatment protocols of 32 patients with a primary mediastinal mass or cysts who were followed up and treated in our clinic were evaluated retrospectively. Twenty-six patients who underwent surgery for biopsy or resection were included in the study. Read More

Ann Thorac Surg 2020 03 7;109(3):e229. Epub 2019 Nov 7.

Lung Cancer Center, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China. Electronic address:

J Cardiothorac Surg 2019 Oct 29;14(1):182. Epub 2019 Oct 29.

Department of Thoracic Surgery, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, China.

Background: The authors presented a 63-year old female synchronously complicated with a thymic tumor located at the left-side of the superior mediastinum, and a paravertebral tumor located at the right-side of the lower thorax. Conventional thoracoscopic surgical procedure using rigid instruments to simultaneously resect the two tumors via the same ports might be technically challenging. To our knowledge, the use of a surgical robot allowed the surgeon to perform precise dissection from extreme angles with the characteristic of articulating surgical instruments. Read More

Pan Afr Med J 2019 3;33:164. Epub 2019 Jul 3.

Service de Chirurgie Thoracique et Cardio-vasculaire, CHU Mohammed VI, Oujda, Maroc.

Schwannoma is a neurogenic tumor originating from Schwann cells. When considering the thoracic region, it is most commonly found in the mediastinum. It commonly appears as a solitary lesion and pleural involvement is extremely rare. Read More

Asian Cardiovasc Thorac Ann 2019 Oct 18;27(8):661-669. Epub 2019 Sep 18.

Faculty of Medicine, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis, Tunisia.

Georgian Med News 2019 Apr(289):55-61

P.L. Shupyk National Medical Academy of Postgraduate Education, Ministry of Healthcare of Ukraine, Department of Thoracic Surgery and Pulmonology, Kiev, Ukraine.

There were more than 730 patients aged 3 months to 18 years with formations of the mediastinum, treated in Pediatric Clinic of Thoracic Surgery NMAPE P. L. Shupyk during the period from 1995 to 2018. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2019 May 10;12(5). Epub 2019 May 10.

Department of Pathology, Sri Ramachandra University Medical College, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.

Ancient schwannoma is a distinctive type of schwannoma occurring mostly in the retroperitoneum. The presentation in the posterior mediastinum is rare. The term 'ancient' represents a group of neurogenic tumours showing degenerative changes with marked nuclear atypia. Read More

J Surg Oncol 2019 May 17;119(6):807-813. Epub 2019 Jan 17.

Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.

Background: Posterior mediastinal neurogenic tumors are among the most frequent mediastinal masses in adults. These tumors may be dumbbell shaped, extending into the spinal canal, exclusively paraspinal or apical tumors extending in the cervical region. In this report, we present our experience in the surgical resection of these tumors and discuss the surgical strategies for such tumors. Read More