98%
921
2 minutes
20
Melanotic schwannoma is an extremely rare schwannoma variant with malignant potential, demonstrating high local and distant recurrence. Given the paucity of data, recommended treatment with localized disease is radical resection, with the unclear benefit of adjuvant therapy. We present a case of an 18-year-old female with no past medical history or genetic syndromes who underwent margin-positive resection of an S1 nerve root melanotic schwannoma followed by adjuvant stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). SRS was delivered without acute or late toxicity by 2.5 years post-treatment. She remains without evidence of recurrent disease, although longer follow-up is needed given the risk of late recurrence. Our case adds to the limited literature documenting the efficacy of adjuvant radiotherapy in melanotic schwannoma and is the first to describe the successful use of SRS for this rare disease.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8980252 | PMC |
http://dx.doi.org/10.7759/cureus.22849 | DOI Listing |
Reports (MDPI)
July 2024
Department of Neurosurgery, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei 11031, Taiwan.
Schwannomas are benign and slow-growing peripheral nerve sheath neoplasms of Schwann cells. These are generally encountered in the neck, head, and flexor areas of the extremities. Even though many schwannomas are easily diagnosable, their variable morphology can occasionally create difficulty in diagnosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAnn Med Surg (Lond)
June 2025
Department of Neurosurgery, Bacha Khan Medical College, Mardan, Pakistan.
Introduction And Importance: Malignant melanotic nerve sheath tumor (MMNST) is a rare and potentially aggressive variant of schwannoma that arises from Schwann cells containing melanin. These tumors most frequently occur in the spinal nerve roots and are often misdiagnosed due to their radiological and histopathological similarities with other pigmented lesions such as malignant melanoma or pigmented meningioma. Accurate diagnosis is crucial, as MMNST carries a higher risk of local recurrence and distant metastasis compared to conventional nerve sheath tumors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Neurosurg Case Lessons
April 2025
Department of Neurosurgery, East Point College of Medical Sciences and Research Hospital, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.
Background: Melanotic schwannoma accounts for 1% of all nerve sheath tumors. These tumors were considered benign, but recent studies have shown their malignant propensity. They pose a diagnostic challenge given the rarity of the tumor.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWorld J Nucl Med
March 2025
Department of Neurosurgery, Hannover School of Medicine, Hannover, Germany.
Malignant melanotic nerve sheath tumors (MMNSTs), also known as a melanocytic schwannoma (MS), are a rare type of peripheral nerve sheath tumors including Schwann cells with melanocytic differentiation. Only a few cases of spinal MMNST have been reported in literature. Fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography ( F-FDG-PET/CT) could be used to detect these lesions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF