My favorite cricketer Yuvraj Singh is diagnosed to have mediastinal seminoma. The life is very unpredictable but the way i look at it is his tumor is curable and he can be seen hitting sixes at the earliest.As the word cancer is scary, i thought to add a brief overview of the tumor he is diagnosed.

What is Mediastinum?

Mediastinum is the central part of the thoracic cavity. It is surrounded by pleural cavities laterally, thoracic inlet superiorly,diaphragm inferiorly,sternum anteriorly and chest wall posteriorly. The superior mediastinum is a part and it lies posterior to the sternum and anterior to the pericardium and great vessels, extends from the thoracic inlet to the diaphragm,

What is Seminoma?

Seminoma is a germ cell tumor most commonly occurring in testis. This can rarely found in extragonadal sites and mediastinum is the most common in this group. It is one of the most treatable and curable cancers, with survival >95% in the early stages.

Mediastinal Seminoma:

Mediastinal seminoma is principally seen in men aged 20 to 40 years.  They grow slowly and may have reached a larger size at the time of presentation. They may also be diagnosed during routine X Ray radiographs. 20% to 30% of mediastinal seminomas are asymptomatic when discovered. Some may present with lung and bone metastases.

Treatment of Mediastinal seminoma:

They are very sensitive to both radiation therapy and chemotherapy and all patients should be treated with curative intent.

Historically, seminomatous tumors (and all mediastinal tumors) were treated surgically .Complete radical resection is rarely possible in view of its location and the vessels surrounding it.  Definitive radiation replaced surgical resection for patients with localized mediastinal seminomatous germ cell tumor with long-term survival rates of 60% to 80% despite having bulkier tumors referred for radiation alone. Cisplatin-based combination chemotherapy is able to consistently provide >90% 5-year overall survival.