The function of the thymus, a small fatty gland of the lymphatic system located in the thorax, under the sternum, is to make white blood cells called lymphocytes, which protect the body against infections. The main mission of this gland is immunological and is about an organ that is already developed in the fifth week of gestation, It increases with adolescence, and its degenerative process begins at 15 years of age.
In the case of myasthenia gravis, removal of the thymus may improve symptoms and reduce the need for medication. Thymectomy is usually prescribed in patients under 60 years of age with moderate weakness due to this disease. However, a recent study puts on the table the possibility that this surgery is counterproductive by increasing the risk of death years later, and the chances of developing cancer.
What if the thymus was more essential to health than doctors thought?
Although to date this gland located behind the sternum was considered ‘useless’ in the adult population (hence why in some cases it was removed), researchers have discovered that eliminating it could be counterproductive, as it has more importance than they believed.
In a study published in The New England Journal of Medicineit seems to have been demonstrated with scientific data that all those people from whom this small organ is removed have a greater risk of death from various causes in later stages of their life. Also, these patients significantly increase (up to double) the chances of developing cancer.
Harvard oncologist David Scadden says, “We’ve found that the thymus is absolutely necessary to maintain health“. Despite this assertion, the truth is that the study cannot demonstrate the direct relationship of thymectomy with cancer or other diseases that cause death, although it opens a new avenue of study.
The relationship of the thymus gland and the immune system
From pregnancy until adolescence, the thymus plays an essential role in the development of the immune system. If removed in adolescence, the production of white blood cells is reduced (T cells) that fight germs, which leaves the patient somewhat helpless.
In adolescence, the thymus is decreasing in sizewhich limits the creation of new T cells. Although on paper its removal might seem irrelevant, it has now been discovered that it should only be done in clear cases of myasthenia gravis.
The conclusion of the study points in the direction that, possibly, the absence of the thymus could be altering the normal functioning of the immune system in the adult population.
“In this investigation, all-cause mortality and cancer risk were higher among patients who had undergone thymectomy. Thymectomy also appeared to be associated with a increased risk of autoimmune disease when patients with preoperative infection, cancer or autoimmune disease were excluded from the analysis,” the experts conclude.
References
Kameron A. Kooshesh, Brody H. Foy, D. Phil., David B. Sykes, Karin Gustafsson, David T. Scadden. ‘Health Consequences of Thymus Removal in Adults’. Published in The New England Journal of Medicine, August 2023. Med 2023;389:406-417. https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMoa2302892
Do you want to receive the best content to take care of your health and feel good? Sign up for our new newsletter.
#organ #doctors #remove #key #preventing #cancer
