A rare mediastinal occurrence of neuroblastoma in an adult: case report

ABSTRACT CONTEXT: Neuroblastoma is the most common extracranial malignant solid tumor that occurs during childhood. It arises from primitive cells and is seen in the adrenal medulla and sympathetic ganglia of the sympathetic nervous system. CASE REPORT: We present a rare case of a 40-year-old man who was diagnosed with the onset of neuroblastoma arising in the mediastinum. He was treated by means of surgical resection in the superior mediastinum after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The patient’s surgical outcome was satisfactory. CONCLUSION: There are still no standard treatment guidelines for adult neuroblastoma patients. Although they have a poor prognosis, the main treatment option should be complete surgery at an early stage. This situation may become clarified through biological and genetic studies in the future.

背景摘要：神经母细胞瘤（Neuroblastoma）是儿童时期最常见的颅外恶性实体瘤，起源于原始细胞，好发于交感神经系统的肾上腺髓质与交感神经节。
病例报告：本次报道一例罕见病例：一名40岁男性被诊断为原发于纵隔的神经母细胞瘤。患者在接受新辅助化疗后，行上纵隔切除术治疗，手术疗效令人满意。
结论：目前成人神经母细胞瘤患者仍无标准治疗指南。尽管该类患者预后较差，但早期完整手术切除仍是主要治疗选择。未来可通过生物学与遗传学研究阐明该领域的相关诊疗问题。