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Mediastinal tumors are rare but, due to their location, can be serious. As the tumors grow, they can cause pressure on the spinal cord, the lungs, the heart, and heart lining, and the trachea.
Mediastinal tumors can be benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous). Most mediastinal tumors in adults occur in the anterior mediastinum and are usually lymphomas or malignant thymomas. These tumors are most common in individuals between 30 and 50 years of age.
Intraoperative complications can occur with mediastinoscopy and include bleeding, which is the most common complication of this procedure.