A rare case of synchronous thymoma type AB and lung adenocarcinoma in a non-smoker middle-aged woman

Thymoma is a rare malignancy of unknown etiology, exceedingly uncommon in children and young adults, which has a prevalence that rises in middle age and presents a peak in the seventh decade of life. A wide variety of subsequent neoplasms have been reported among thymoma survivors, including non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL), soft tissue sarcomas, gastrointestinal malignancies, prostate cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, and skin cancer. According to already published data collected from cancer registries, patients with thymoma have an elevated risk for developing B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma, due to immune disturbance arising from the thymoma or its treatment. NSCLC is the most common type of lung cancer and the greatest cause of morbidity and mortality in Greece. The prognosis of NSCLC is based significantly on early diagnosis and selection of the optimal therapeutic approach. We describe, for the first time, a rare case of concomitant thymoma and adenocarcinoma unilaterally in the same lung, which was treated successfully with radical surgical resection of both lesions concurrently. The linking mechanism between thymoma and lung adenocarcinoma has not been clarified yet. However, thymoma patients must be aware of development of new malignancies, as early detection and treatment provide better prognosis.