Anterior mediastinal mass

Contributed by: Ed Boas

Clinical history: 55 year old woman with left breast invasive ductal carcinoma, and an anterior mediastinal mass seen on breast MRI.

Findings:  CT shows an upper anterior mediastinal mass.  Also note the left breast cancer.  Pathology showed ectopic thyroid tissue with Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

Discussion: In general, the differential diagnosis for an anterior mediastinal mass is: thyroid mass, thymic mass (thymoma, thymic carcinoma), teratoma, lymphoma, and metastasis.