Cisplatin-containing chemotherapy in the treatment of invasive thymoma: report of five cases.

Invasive thymomas are rare neoplasms arising from the epithelial cells of the thymus. In this paper, we report five cases of invasive thymoma treated with cisplatin either alone or combined with etoposide. Two partial responses (lasting 1 and 27+ months from the start of chemotherapy), two minor responses (lasting 1.5 and 13+ months from the start of chemotherapy), and one mixed response were observed. Further studies with cisplatin-containing regimens are warranted in the treatment of this rare tumor.