Posterior Mediastinal Ancient Schwannoma Mimicking a Cyst
Abstract
Background: Several types of neurogenic tumors can occur in mediastinum and commonly present as posterior
mediastinal mass lesions. Generally they are categorized in to those arising from peripheral nerves or
sympathetic ganglia. Schwannoma is the most common neurogenic tumor of this area. Generally they are
presented as solid encapsulated lesions and are difficult to miss on radiology. Rarely they can be large enough to
undergo cystic degeneration and cause confusion with other cystic mass lesions of the area. Large masses can
also cause pressure symptoms and leads to respiratory compromise.
Conclusion: Posterior mediastinal schwannomas though usually are benign and asymptomatic but can prove
fatal if attain a very large size. It should always be included in the differential diagnosis of posterior mediastinal
large cystic masses. Degenerative nuclear atypia associated with ancient schwannoma should not be confused
with malignancy. Patient can lead a symptom free life after surgical resection of these tumors.
Copyright Notice: The authors will retain the copyrights of their submitted manuscripts for all purposes.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Readers may “Share-copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format” and “Adapt-remix, transform, and build upon the material”. The readers must give appropriate credit to the source of the material and indicate if changes were made to the material. Readers may not use the material for commercial purpose. The readers may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.