Anterior mediastinal mass - Thymoma

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Anterior mediastinal mass - Thymoma

  • The mediastinal contours are bulging due to a large mass – in this case a thymoma
  • It is possible to determine that this mass is located anteriorly in the mediastinum
  • The aortic knuckle (mid mediastinum) and both the azygo-oesophageal and descending aorta lines (posterior mediastinum) are clearly visible and so the mass cannot be located adjacent to these structures

Anterior mediastinal mass - Thyroid

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Anterior mediastinal mass - Thyroid

  • A large soft tissue mass causes narrowing of the trachea and deviates it towards the left side
  • The right paratracheal stripe is obscured at the level of the mass but remains visible below the mass
  • This patient had an enlarged thyroid gland (goitre) which was visible clinically and was shown to be benign on imaging with ultrasound

Page author: Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust UK (Read bio)

Last reviewed: October 2019