New histological classification and staging of thymic malignancies: ITMIG consensus statements and the 8th TNM staging system

Thymic epithelial tumors are rare malignancies, and their pathological classification has been refined for many times. In 1961, Bernatz et al . have subtyped thymic malignancies according to lymphocytes and epithelial component; however, the concept of thymic carcinoma was not introduced (1).