CancerCompass message board discussion started by Danim on 2/27/2007 http://www.cancercompass.com/message-board/message/all,9935,0.htm Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://backend.userland.com/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ Hello everyone I am 20 years old and went to the emergency room with chest pains and I thought it had to do with my lungs because I have had blood clots in my lungs and for some reason God was watching over me and kept me here and I thought I wouldn't have to go through anything anymore for awhile. Well 7 months later I had these chest pains and I had a ct done and they sent me home with pain reliever then 3 weeks later I received a certified letter to see my doctor immediatly. When I saw him he never mentioned a word about cancer or anything luckily my mother was with me and had him make a copy of the ER's notes. When we got home to look at it is said the considerations were thymoma, lymphoma, or teratoma. Because I have an enlarged thymus and a nodule in my lung. So I saw a specialist in Oct and then I received a second opinion in Dec. both doctors want to wait before they do a biopsy. Even though the Petscan showed activity in my thymus. I am just looking for advice because I am young and I am a fighter and I figure if I have this condition I would like for it not to get worse and just to remove it am I thinking right or are the doctors right for waiting? I am just confused and scared and don't have really anybody to talk to. Everyone just says well if the doctors aren't worried there is no worries. Well they are not the ones with the chest pain and the chance that they have this. Also how many times is there activity in an enlarged thymus and it not be cancerous? Will I have to do chemo and loose my hair? If ANYONE knows anything or can give me some support that would be great! Thanks!!!!!!! Danim Tue, 27 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT Hi, I read your question regarding doctors finding an enlarged thymus and nodule in your lung.  I am wondering what kind of specialist you saw.  If I were you, I would get a referral to a cardiac-thoracic surgeon.  I wish we would have done this with my mother initially rather than waiting to get a specialist' opinion.  They found a "mediastinal mass" on a routine chest x-ray of my mother in December 2005.  We live in a small town and she was initially referred to a lung specialist who suspected Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.  He did a "bronchoscopy", which is a computer guided needle biopsy of the mass.  We were told a good sample was taken and that the tissue was benign.  The doctor recommended CAT scans every three months to monitor the mass.  He stated if it did not grow, it was "probably nothing".  In November of 2006, just before Thanksgiving, the CAT scan showed the mass had grown.  At this point we insisted on a second opinion and went to IU Med Center where Dr. Kenneth Kessler, a reknowned cardiothoracic surgeon suspected cancer.  He did a core biopsy which confirmed a diagnosis of Stage 3 invasive Thymoma (cancer of the thymus gland/one of the rarest types of cancer which only one to two percent of the population ever get).  She is now seeing one of the only Thymoma specialist in the nation, Dr. Patrick Loehrer at IU Med center and has finished four rounds of chemotherapy.  They have scheduled her for another CAT scan in three weeks to see if the cancer has shrunk enough for the tumor to be operable. If so, they will remove the mass.  If not, they will do radiation.  You are young and, hopefully, you do not have cancer.  However, I do not want anyone else to go through what our family is going through and I would encourage you not to wait and to get a second opinion immediately.  Cancer is rare in younger people, but it does happen.  I wish you and your family the best!  Michelle. Shellybean Tue, 03 Apr 2007 00:00:00 GMT Yep, local doctors don't know beans about thymoma and usually do more damage than good.  Get to a specialist at a large regional clinic.  If you are close enough, IU would be great.  If not, other like Mayo, MD Andersen, Stanford, Sloan Kettering, etc would be fine starppy Fri, 15 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT  On 4/3/2007 Shellybean wrote:Hi, I read your question regarding doctors finding an enlarged thymus and nodule in your lung.  I am wondering what kind of specialist you saw.  If I were you, I would get a referral to a cardiac-thoracic surgeon.  I wish we would have done this with my mother initially rather than waiting to get a specialist' opinion.  They found a "mediastinal mass" on a routine chest x-ray of my mother in December 2005.  We live in a small town and she was initially referred to a lung specialist who suspected Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.  He did a "bronchoscopy", which is a computer guided needle biopsy of the mass.  We were told a good sample was taken and that the tissue was benign.  The doctor recommended CAT scans every three months to monitor the mass.  He stated if it did not grow, it was "probably nothing".  In November of 2006, just before Thanksgiving, the CAT scan showed the mass had grown.  At this point we insisted on a second opinion and went to IU Med Center where Dr. Kenneth Kessler, a reknowned cardiothoracic surgeon suspected cancer.  He did a core biopsy which confirmed a diagnosis of Stage 3 invasive Thymoma (cancer of the thymus gland/one of the rarest types of cancer which only one to two percent of the population ever get).  She is now seeing one of the only Thymoma specialist in the nation, Dr. Patrick Loehrer at IU Med center and has finished four rounds of chemotherapy.  They have scheduled her for another CAT scan in three weeks to see if the cancer has shrunk enough for the tumor to be operable. If so, they will remove the mass.  If not, they will do radiation.  You are young and, hopefully, you do not have cancer.  However, I do not want anyone else to go through what our family is going through and I would encourage you not to wait and to get a second opinion immediately.  Cancer is rare in younger people, but it does happen.  I wish you and your family the best!  Michelle. I waas just wndering how you are felling now. I have just found out I have have stage 3 thymoma and need radation. Did the chemo  and radation help yu. I thought this is a cureable cancer. But I have been reading the message boards and saw it does come back.  thank you  for any info you can give me. gaylee  gaylee111 Wed, 24 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT HI Gaylee,I am not the person who wrote the message that you are replying to but my husband currently has thymus cancer.  It has been a long hard road of pain he had in his back starting 4 years ago.  He has been to doctor after doctor and received more pain medication than I care to think about.  In April of 2008 he was diagnosed with cancer, probably Hodgkins they thought.  The doctors performed a PET scan and a biopsy.  It was originally diagnosed as lung cancer.  We were referred to Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore where we spoke to an excellent thoracic surgon.  Not happy with the diagnosis of llung cancer in a 38 year old man who did not have cancer in his lungs, he ordered the biospy be sent to his hospital.  Then after several weeks, it was diagnosed as squamous cell thymus carcinoma.   The are certain that it is thymus cancer but they are not certain of the type.  So they are calling it thymus carcinoma to give it a name.  He stars his 5th round of chemo next Monday and it is very hard for him.  But the good news is that he had a PT scan done after the 3rd round and is tumor has shrunk from about the size of an egg to the size of a walnut, which is a 50% reduction.  The surgon in Baltimore are ordering 6 total then we will meet with him to discuss surgery.  We will not know my husbands prognosis yet because we will not know the type until after sugery, but regardless of the odds I know that my husband is going to live a LONG life after this.  nina paulie Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT Hi I just saw your message, I was wondering how you are doing and  what did the drs. do for you. I just found out I have thymoma dont know if cancer or not  I got 2 different opionions. so I am going  for more drs. before anybody starts radation on me. thank, for your time, gaylee gaylee111 Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT  On 10/2/2008 nina paulie wrote:HI Gaylee,I am not the person who wrote the message that you are replying to but my husband currently has thymus cancer.  It has been a long hard road of pain he had in his back starting 4 years ago.  He has been to doctor after doctor and received more pain medication than I care to think about.  In April of 2008 he was diagnosed with cancer, probably Hodgkins they thought.  The doctors performed a PET scan and a biopsy.  It was originally diagnosed as lung cancer.  We were referred to Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore where we spoke to an excellent thoracic surgon.  Not happy with the diagnosis of llung cancer in a 38 year old man who did not have cancer in his lungs, he ordered the biospy be sent to his hospital.  Then after several weeks, it was diagnosed as squamous cell thymus carcinoma.   The are certain that it is thymus cancer but they are not certain of the type.  So they are calling it thymus carcinoma to give it a name.  He stars his 5th round of chemo next Monday and it is very hard for him.  But the good news is that he had a PT scan done after the 3rd round and is tumor has shrunk from about the size of an egg to the size of a walnut, which is a 50% reduction.  The surgon in Baltimore are ordering 6 total then we will meet with him to discuss surgery.  We will not know my husbands prognosis yet because we will not know the type until after sugery, but regardless of the odds I know that my husband is going to live a LONG life after this.  please keep in touch with me my drs.  dont know if it is cancer got two different answers. gaylee gaylee111 Sat, 04 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT