The tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) staging system for lung cancer has been modified since its first edition in the late 1960s. Its seventh edition has been recently published and, for the first time, a truly worldwide database was analyzed in order to propose modifications in the staging. Significant changes have been made in the tumor and metastasis descriptors. Although the recommendations for the node descriptor have remained unchanged, the analysis of the factors related to this descriptor suggests that modifications will be made in the future. The forthcoming revisions of the TNM staging system might take the molecular aspects of lung cancer into consideration, aiming at a more refined staging system.

Keywords: Lung neoplasms; Neoplasm staging; Epidemiologic methods.

Thymolipoma is a very rare benign neoplasm of the thymus. We present the case of a 42-year-old male with a massive mediastinal tumor discovered on a chest X-ray after a motorcycle accident. The patient had no complaints, and his physical examination was unremarkable. Chest CT scans revealed a lipomatous mass containing areas of soft tissue density. The patient was submitted to median sternotomy expanded to left anterolateral thoracotomy, resulting in the complete excision of the tumor. The pathological diagnosis was thymolipoma. Thymolipoma usually attains enormous dimensions by the time of diagnosis, and the occasional symptoms are related to compression of adjacent structures. Surgical resection is the treatment of choice and offers the only possibility of cure. The airway deserves special care during anesthesia induction.

Keywords: Thymus neoplasms; Mediastinal neoplasms; Thymectomy; Lipoma.