Open AccessT-Lymphoblastic Leukemia/Lymphoma and Thymoma: A Case Report and Review of the Literature of a Rare Association
Author(s) -
Nadav Mizrahi,
Eitan Kugler,
Lucille Hayman,
Moshe Yeshurun,
Alon Grossman,
Pia Raanani,
Ofir Wolach
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
acta haematologica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.574
H-Index - 56
eISSN - 1421-9662
pISSN - 0001-5792
DOI - 10.1159/000519033
Subject(s) - thymoma , medicine , leukemia , lymphoma , lymphoblastic lymphoma , biopsy , hematopoietic stem cell transplantation , pathology , transplantation , immunology , immune system , t cell
The co-occurrence of thymoma and T-lymphoblastic lymphoma/leukemia is an extremely rare but previously reported association that poses a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge. We describe a 67-year-old patient with long-standing untreated B1 thymoma that presented with constitutional symptoms and a painless soft tissue mass on the right chest wall. Pathological analysis of the biopsy from the mass demonstrated T-lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma. The patient went through a complicated course, was refractory to several lines of therapy, and eventually underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in complete remission from a matched related donor. The association between thymoma and malignant neoplasms has been described in the literature, most notably with colorectal adenocarcinoma and thyroid cancer. Thymoma-associated leukemia is, however, extremely unusual, with limited reports in the literature. Distinguishing between thymoma and leukemia can be challenging and often requires meticulous diagnostic efforts. For patients with a past history of thymoma, awareness of this particular association should be bared in mind to allow earlier diagnosis and therapy.