An expert view on challenges in thymoma and thymic cancer

Nicolas Girard describes the challenges of treating rare cancers such as thymoma and thymic carcinoma with very complex histological profiles. He explains the need for a systematic histopathological review of the cases to confirm the initial diagnosis, and the availability of a multidisciplinary team.

Many aspects of the treatment approach may be a matter of discussion between the surgeon, radiologist, medical oncologist, neurologist...

The study of large databases showed the benefit of post-surgery radiotherapy. In addition, a new staging system allows to better assess resectability and patient outcome.
There are ongoing studies gathering biological data to identify biomarkers for targeted therapies.
 
Questions:
1) What is particularly challenging in the treatment of rare tumours?
2) What is specific to thymoma and thymic carcinoma regarding pathology and biology?
3) Are there advances in the treatment of thymoma and thymic cancer?
4) What is clinical research focusing on?

Produced by the European Society for Medical Oncology
http://www.esmo.org