I think that if you are questioning to possibility of a thymoma it's worth the CT scan, regardless of the double seronegative aspect. Here's my reasoning...

If you have Costochondritis (as you so simply put it, inflammation of the chest wall) it is possible that the inflammation could obscure the view on xray. Having said that, there is no garantee that a CT scan will work any better depending on the level of inflammation. The benefit to a CT scan is that they can use contrast which will illuminate the tricky areas which may bring a thymoma into view. The other thing is that if you don't request a CT scan you may always worry about "what could be there". That alone can cause a lot of stress and unnecessary worrying. I know that CT scans are expensive and they shouldn't be done haphazardly but if it can put your mind at ease and shed a little light on what may or may not be going on inside you, I think it's worth the risks.

That's just my thought on the topic but I'm interested to know what others think of the topic. It's a very good question. I'm glad you asked it because I'm sure that there are many others here that have been wondering about the same.

I hope that you are doing okay and taking good care of yourself.
Aloha,
Angie

Hi Angie, thank you for replying - I am so sorry to hear you have been so poorly! I hope you are taking it easy too!!

I am doing better with rest but the progress is so SLOW! I have emailed my Neuro's secretary to ask her to see whether he thinks it would be worth a closer look. It's interesting what you said about the inflammation possibly affecting the view - I hadn't ever thought if that and I remember my chest being really painful on the day and thinking that anything nasty would show itself as I was too scared to mention it to the Doctors for a while!!

Thanks again for replying - we'll see what my Neuro thinks? I always feel awful asking or pushing for things as I'm just grateful to have found someone who wants to help me....I know it's silly but I'm always so scared when I hear of Dr's removing diagnosis's, especially in the seronegative patients! But that's another story and I'll stop waffling now! Lol

Thanks again - I hope you are feeling a little better, bless you!
Eve.x

Eve, You shouldn't feel bad for pushing. Honestly, doctors are human and they can sometimes be easily side tracked or distracted. There are many times that I've mentioned stuff to my doctors that hadn't even occurred to them so everything is worth mentioning. Even if they've thought about it too because sometimes they don't realize that they never explained it or even told you about it. Please don't be afraid to mention the things that concern you. A lot of times patients assume that the medical professionals just automatically know something but we don't know unless you tell us. If there is one person in the world that you should tell everything to, it's your doctor. Even the ugly details that your closest friends and family don't want to hear about. There is always a chance that other things are going on and you don't want to overlook those issues or write them off to MG, if it isn't related.

I have been worked in radiology in the past and for those with your condition it can be difficult to get a good view of the lungs and other tissue due to inflammation. If the tech doesn't know what they are doing (changing the settings and proper distance of the films, etc) some things won't show up or will be too distorted to make heads or tails of it. It's a very important detail and something like pneumonia, which can be very small on xray at times, can be overlooked. I would definitely ask more questions and see what the doctor has to say about it. Good luck and let us know what happens with it.

Thank you for the well wishes. Aside from the doubled doses of prednisone and my inability to sleep, I'm doing so much better. I hope you get some answers. Aloha! Angie

I'm double seronegative, and my neuro ordered a chest CT (and MRI) anyway - found hyperplastic thymus. So, not thymoma, but still something they were concerned enough about to have it removed.

When I found out I had Thymoma tumor I had no signs of MG and at the time did not test positive for MG. Just woke up one day and had a high fever, dr took and X-ray and there it was. Did not have symptoms or get diagnosed with MG till fifteen years later. I think it would be a no brainer to get the CT if nothing else just to be on the safe side and ease your concern.
Feel better.
Al

All of my bloodwork was negative for MG antibodies but I still had the CT Scan and they did find a thymoma.