Is transesophageal echocardiography useful in planning surgery of mediastinal thymomas? Transesophageal investigation of a mediastinal thymoma.

Thymomas are the commonest tumors arising in the anterior mediastinum, sometimes representing an incidental finding at radiological examination. Surgery of these neoplasms must be planned after accurately assessing the invasive or non-invasive nature of the mass. In the present case this could be achieved also by submitting the patient to transesophageal echocardiography which could accurately exclude infiltration of heart walls. We therefore think that this technique can be considered a useful complement to radiological ones in defining the surgical strategy of mediastinal thymomas.