Contributed by Jason C. Fowler, BS and Uma NM Rao, MD
Published on line in June 2000
PATIENT HISTORY:
The patient is a 39 year old male who presented to an outside hospital with diaphoresis, nausea, and substernal chest pain that radiated down his left arm. Chest CT scans revealed a large, retrosternal, anterior mediastinal mass (Figs 1, 2 and 3). The mass demonstrated both fatty and solid components, as well as focal calcification. Abdominal and pelvic CT scans were both negative, as was a scrotal ultrasound. Alpha-feto protein (AFP) and beta human chorionic gonadotropin hormone (HCG) were both within normal limits.