Abstract
Although the term thymoma technically applies to any tumor arising within the thymus gland, it has come to mean a tumor of thymic epithelium only [1]. In their 1976 Atlas of Tumor Pathology, Rosai and Levine [2] proposed “that the designation of thymoma be restricted to neoplasms of the thymic epithelial cells, regardless of the presence or absence of a lymphoid component.” They delegated originality for this concept to Bell [3], who wrote in 1917, “A thymoma may now be defined as a tumor, benign or malignant, probably derived from the thymic epithelium.” How one defines the specific phrase “benign or malignant” has remained to this day the premier issue for pathologists and therapists alike.
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© 1995 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Wilkins, E.W. (1995). Thymoma: Surgical Management. In: Wood, D.E., Thomas, C.R. (eds) Mediastinal Tumors. Medical Radiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-79426-1_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-79426-1_2
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