Hi Chews - I'm so proud of you for educating yourself on your mothers disease! I don't know if you've read the post on family denial, but it makes life much harder on us so you are to be commended!

The thymus gland "programs" our immune system when we are younger and by about age 30 it should have finished it's job and kind of shriveled up and gone away. To be honest, they don't really know exactly what it does in MG, but have found that removal can put one into remission, or at least lessen the severity of MG, thereby reducing the volume of drugs required to keep MG under control.

I hope you visit us often, and encourage your mother to join in as well.
She's very lucky to have someone in her family take the initiative to learn all they can - most of my family did that, and their understanding has helped me tremendously!

I would encourage you to visit the "sticky notes" located at the top of the posts for links to help you even more. MGFA.org is a wonderful resource for getting information! AND they have printable information for care providers, medical staff (many hospital personnel are almost clueless, so this is very important) family and friends, and of course for the patient themselves.

Thank you for taking an interest. Hope to hear from you and your mother again soon!