Copyright: ©Author(s) 2026. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license. No commercial re-use. See permissions. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc.
World J Clin Cases. Mar 26, 2026; 14(9): 118016
Published online Mar 26, 2026. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v14.i9.118016
Published online Mar 26, 2026. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v14.i9.118016
Hidden giant - atypical pediatric anterior mediastinal teratoma: A case report
Camila Santos Loor, Pamela Katherine Macias Fernandez, Enrique Antonio Gagliardo Cadena, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Sociedad de Lucha Contra el Cáncer - SOLCA Hos
Erika Esther Blasco Arriaga, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Sociedad de Lucha Contra el Cáncer - SOLCA Hospital, Guayaquil 090101, Guayas, Ecuador
Luis Espin Custodio, Department of Pediatric Oncology, Sociedad de Lucha Contra el Cáncer - SOLCA Hospital, Guayaquil 090101, Guayas, Ecuador
Marco Fabricio Bombón Caizaluisa, Department of Surgical Oncology, Sociedad de Lucha Contra el Cáncer - SOLCA Hospital, Guayaquil 090101, Guayas, Ecuador
Edwin Antonio Ross Rodriguez, Marlon Irwin Pozo Albán, Department of Anatomopathology, Sociedad de Lucha Contra el Cáncer - SOLCA Hospital, Guayaquil 090101, Guayas, Ecuador
Agata Grochowska, Faculty of Medicine, Medical University of Lodz, Lodz 90-419, Poland
Author contributions: Loor CS and Gagliardo Cadena EA contributed to conceptualization; Bombón Caizaluisa MF and Loor CS contributed to data curation; Custodio LE, Blasco Arriaga EE, Ross Rodriguez EA, and Gagliardo Cadena EA contributed to formal analysis; Loor CS and Grochowska A contributed to investigation; Pozo Albán MI, Macias Fernandez PK, and Gagliardo Cadena EA contributed to methodology; Custodio LE, Blasco Arriaga EE, and Gagliardo Cadena EA contributed to project administration; Custodio LE, Blasco Arriaga EE, Gagliardo Cadena EA, and Loor CS contributed to resources; Loor CS contributed to software; Custodio LE, Blasco Arriaga EE, and Gagliardo Cadena EA contributed to supervision, validation, visualization; Loor CS and Grochowska A contributed to writing - original draft, writing - review & editing.
Informed consent statement: Informed consent was obtained from the patient’s guardians for publication of this case report and any accompanying images.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this case report.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read the CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Corresponding author: Enrique Antonio Gagliardo Cadena, MD, Chief, Department of Car
Received: January 8, 2026
Revised: January 31, 2026
Accepted: March 4, 2026
Published online: March 26, 2026
Processing time: 75 Days and 16.8 Hours
Revised: January 31, 2026
Accepted: March 4, 2026
Published online: March 26, 2026
Processing time: 75 Days and 16.8 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: We describe a rare case of a giant mature anterior mediastinal teratoma in a 12-year-old boy presenting with prolonged left subcostal pain without respiratory symptoms. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography revealed a massive mediastinal tumor with significant mass effect. Complete surgical resection resulted in full recovery, and histopathology confirmed a benign mature teratoma. This case highlights the need to consider mediastinal tumors in children with persistent, unexplained thoracoabdominal pain and underscores the key role of imaging and surgery in achieving favorable outcomes.