I was just wondering if anyone has experienced any "symptoms" ie. chest pain before a CT scan showed an enlarged thymus or thymoma? For those of you who had a thymoma or enlarged thymus could you share your experience before the thymectomy. I am scheduled to have my CT scan done tomorrow. Thanks for the input.

Nope, none here, but my thymus wasn't enlarged - if anything it was a bit on the small side (per my surgeon)

If you have "classic: symptoms of MG, they are going to want to take it out no matter what - @ least that's what I was told......


Just remember it will be over soon and hopefully you will feel AMAZING!!!!

I know I shouldn;t have responded, as my thymus was normal, but I do know how scary it is to have to ponder such big surgery

A lot of people on this site have had their's removed, so you should get some really great advise from everyone!!!!

Hang in there! I'll be praying for you!!!

Erin

I had a 9 cm (~3.5") thymoma on my thymus. I did not have any chest pain although I did experience some shortness of breath when exercising vigorously. Then again, I was a sloth and exercising vigorously was rarely done. My MG symptoms were what led to the CAT scan and discovered the mass.

Good luck

Brian.

A local veterinarian in my town ended up in ER one night with severe shortness of breath. They did a chest x ray and found an ENORMOUS thymoma which encompassed his whole sternal area and even crept under his collarbones. As it turned out, he had Stage IV cancer.

Remarkably, he has survived about 4 years now without a recurrance of the cancer. Interestingly enough, he never had a single MG symptom through it all---"just" cancer. LOL We had a talk at our kids' soccer game when he was going through chemo and had to laugh--there I was with a completely normal thymus and severe MG and he with a thymoma as big as a pizza and symptom free.

Hope things turn out for you.

Missy

Rezmommy...

Well I don't know the exact size of mine...but suffice it to say, that what they saw on the CT, and then what they found in the operating room were two seperate events - as the tumor had grown considerably and was taking over my internals.

I didn't have any pain in my chest before they sliced it open (hahaha)...just the MG symptoms. So please don't think that because you don't have any pain that there isn't anything there.

Although interestingly enough - my pharmacist, who I had been dealing with for years phoned me at home - SURPRISE! She asked about my MG and masses, because her sister had a CT and had a mass in her upper chest wall (wasn't MG in her case)...but just interesting where these masses grow....and why.

Please - keep us posted on your results.

Lydia