Hodgkin's-like disease of the thymus. Clinical, surgical and morphological correlations

The histogenesis and relationship of so-called "granulomatous thymoma" to Hodgkin's disease is still a matter of controversy. Three of these lesions were selected from 43 thymomas and their clinico-pathological patterns are described. Two cases were diagnosed as Hodgkin's disease of the mediastinum because of the absence of epithelial structures of thymic origin. In one case, together with the morphological aspects of Hodgkin's disease, we noticed epithelial structures indicating a primary neoplastic lesion in the thymus. Accordingly we conclude that the term "Hodgkin's disease of the thymus" must be limited only to those lesions of the mediastinum in which structures of thymic origin are present. Other mediastinal Hodgkin's lesions, even in the presence of clinical, radiological and surgical evidence of thymic origin but in which it is not possible to observe such thymic structures, must be classified as Hodgkin's disease localized to the anterior mediastinum.