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Thymomas are rare tumors of the thymus gland. Symptoms include chest pain, a persistent cough, shortness of breath, difficulty in swallowing and hoarseness of the voice. The fact that the thymus gland is involved in the development of the early immune system means that some people with thymomas have other illnesses related to this. The main feature of this condition is increased fatigue of certain muscle groups, which means that when those muscles are used they become weak very quickly.
Their behavior is classified as either non-invasive or invasive. Slightly under half of all thymomas are invasive. It is often difficult to be clear whether a thymoma is malignant or not. Doctors can usually tell by taking a tissue sample (biopsy) and looking at it under a microscope. In other words, a thymoma that is non-invasive may be considered benign, whereas one that had invaded the surrounding tissue (or elsewhere) would be considered cancerous.
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