Autoimmune Alopecia Areata Due to Thymoma Without Myasthenia Gravis: A Case Report

May 2023 in “ Surgical Case Reports ”

Yukino Saito, Tomohiro Yazawa, Toshiteru Nagashima, Yoichi Ohtaki, Natsuko Kawatani, Eiji Narusawa, Ryohei Yoshikawa, Nozomi Matsumura, Tatsuro Maehara, Ken Shirabe

alopecia areata autoimmune hair loss thymoma topical steroids CD8-positive lymphocytes transsternal extended thymectomy hair loss steroids thymus gland tumor thymus gland removal

TLDR A woman's hair loss improved after removing a tumor in her thymus gland, suggesting hair loss can be linked to such tumors even without a specific muscle weakness condition.

A 60-year-old woman with rapid alopecia areata, an autoimmune hair loss condition, was discovered to have a thymoma, a tumor in the thymus gland, but did not have myasthenia gravis, a condition often linked with thymoma. Despite two months of topical steroids, her hair loss did not improve. A biopsy revealed CD8-positive lymphocytes in her hair follicles. However, her hair loss improved two months after a transsternal extended thymectomy was performed to remove the thymoma. This case indicates that alopecia areata can be a rare complication in thymoma cases without myasthenia gravis, and thoracic surgeons should be aware of this potentiality.

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research Autoimmune Alopecia Areata Due to Thymoma Without Myasthenia Gravis: A Case Report

May 2023 in “Surgical Case Reports”

A woman's hair loss improved after removing a tumor in her thymus gland, suggesting hair loss can be linked to such tumors even without a specific muscle weakness condition.