They can be benign or cancerous , forming from any tissue that exists or passes through the chest cavity . Most mediastinal tumors in children are benign while many mediastinal tumors in adults are cancerous . Because they are located in the chest cavity where the heart and major arteries are or near the spinal cord in back , both benign and malignant tumors must be treated .
There are several types of mediastinal tumors :
Germ cell tumors : These cancers are very treatable and often curable . They develop from reproductive cells and are more often found in the reproductive systems of both men and women . When found outside the reproductive system , they may also be called extragonadal germ cell tumors . How these cells move from the reproductive system to the mediastinum is not currently known .
Lymphomas : These malignant tumors start in the lymphatic system and include Hodgkin ' s lymphoma and non-Hodgkin ' s lymphoma . The lymphatic system is a complex network of capillaries , thin vessels , valves , ducts , nodes and organs that helps to protect and maintain the fluid environment of the body by filtering and draining lymph . In rare case , lymphoma can originate in the lungs .
Teratomas : These malignant tumors are made of cysts that contain one or more layers of embryonic cells . The layers are called ectoderms , mesoderms and endoderms . A rare cancer , teratomas occur most often in young men in their twenties and thirties . The tumors are most often located in the chest area . By the time the cancer is diagnosed , they have often spread . A number of other cancers are often associated with these tumors , including :
� Acute myelogenous leukemia ( AML ) � Embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma ( ERMS ) � Malignant histiocytosis � Myelodysplasia ( MDS ) � Small cell undifferentiated carcinoma
Thymomas : Thymomas and thymic carcinoma are rare cancers in which cancerous cells form on the outside of the thymus , a small organ in the upper chest that makes white blood cells . Thymomas are rarely malignant , grow slowly and don ' t often spread beyond the thymus . Thymoma is linked with myasthenia gravis and other autoimmune diseases ( diseases that cause the immune system to attack healthy cells and tissue ).
Thymic carcinomas grow more quickly and have usually spread by the time the cancer is diagnosed . People with thymoma often have autoimmune diseases as well .
Source : https :// www . hopkinsmedicine . org / health / conditions‐and‐diseases / lung‐cancer / lung‐cancer‐types