Expansion
Thymoma, Teratoma, Thyroid (retrosternal), Terrible lymphoma
Expansion
- T - Thymoma and other thymic tumours
- T - Teratoma and other germ cell tumours
- T - Thyroid, that is a retrosternal extension of a goitre
- T - Terrible lymphoma
The anterior mediastinum is the narrow space between the sternum and the pericardium, so it contains little more than the thymus, fat, lymph nodes and the internal thoracic vessels. Anything filling it out on a lateral chest radiograph therefore comes from a short list.
Learning note
Pair this with the posterior mediastinum, where neurogenic tumours predominate, and the middle mediastinum, where the commonest masses are lymphadenopathy, bronchogenic cysts and vascular abnormalities.