Thymoma Health Article

Coping with cancer treatment

The patient should consult his or her treatment team regarding any side effects or complications of treatment. Many of the side effects of chemotherapy can be relieved by medications. Patients should consult a psychotherapist and/or join a support group to deal with the emotional consequences of cancer and its treatment.

Clinical trials

As of early 2001, there were two active clinical trials studying thymoma. Both studies are sponsored by the National Cancer Institute. One trial (#E-1C99) was studying the effectiveness and toxicity of carboplatin and paclitaxel on thymoma. This study was open to patients with invasive, recurrent, or metastatic thymoma. The other study (#E-1C97) was studying the effectiveness and toxicity of octreotide both with and without prednisone for metastatic or recurrent thymoma. The National Cancer Institute web site has information on these and other studies. Patients should consult with their treatment team to determine if they are candidates for these or any other ongoing studies.

Prevention

Because there are no known risk factors for the development of thymoma there are no preventive measures. However, there may be an association between thymic cancer and exposure of the chest to radiation.

Special concerns

Damage to the lungs and/or esophagus caused by radiation therapy to the upper chest is a concern. Biopsy runs the risk of seeding tumor cells to other parts of the body.

Resources

BOOKS

Bruss, Katherine, Christina Salter, and Esmeralda Galan, eds. American Cancer Society's Guide to Complementary and Alternative Cancer Methods. Atlanta: American Cancer Society, 2000.

Cameron, Robert, Patrick Loehrer, and Charles Thomas. "Neo plasms of the Mediastinum." In Cancer: Principles and Practice of Oncology., DeVita, Vincent T., Samuel Hell man, and Steven Rosenberg, eds. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2001.

PERIODICALS

Giaccone, Giuseppe. "Treatment of Thymoma and Thymic Carcinoma." Annals of Oncology 11, Suppl. 3 (2000): 245-6.

Muller-Hermelink, H., and A. Marx. "Thymoma." Current Opinion in Oncology 12 (September 2000): 426-33.

Thomas, Charles, Cameron Wright, and Patrick Loehrer. "Thy moma: State of the Art." Journal of Clinical Oncology 17 (July 1999): 2280-9.

ORGANIZATIONS

American Cancer Society. 1599 Clifton Rd. NE, Atlanta, GA 30329. (800) ACS-2345. <http://www.cancer.org>.

Cancer Research Institute, National Headquarters. 681 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10022. (800) 992-2623. <http://www.cancerresearch.org>.

National Institutes of Health. National Cancer Institute. 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20982. Cancer Information Service: (800) 4-CANCER. <http://cancernet.nci.nih.gov>.

Belinda Rowland, Ph.D.

Adjuvant therapy

—A treatment that is intended to aid the primary treatment. Adjuvant treatments for thymic cancer are radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

Invasive

—A descriptive term for thymoma that has spread beyond the outer wall of the thymus.

Lymphocyte

—A type of white blood cell that is found in the thymus.

Neoadjuvant therapy

—Radiation therapy or chemotherapy used to shrink a tumor before surgical removal of the tumor.

Paraneoplastic syndrome

—A set of symptoms that is associated with cancer but is not directly caused by the cancer.

Pleura

—The outer covering of the lungs.

QUESTIONS TO ASK THE DOCTOR

• What histologic class of thymoma do I have?
• What stage of cancer do I have?
• Has the cancer spread?
• What is the five-year survival rate for patients with this stage of thymoma?
• Will you perform a biopsy?
• What type of biopsy will you perform?
• What is the risk of seeding during a biopsy?
• What are my treatment options?
• What are the risks and side effects of these treatments?
• What medications can I take to relieve treatment side effects?
• Are there any clinical studies underway that would be appropriate for me?
• What effective alternative or complementary treatments are available for thymoma?
• How debilitating is the treatment? Will I be able to continue working?
• What is the chance that the cancer will recur?
• What are the signs and symptoms of recurrence?
• What can be done to prevent recurrence?
• How often will I have follow-up examinations?