BENIGN GLANDULAR PERIPHERAL-NERVE SHEATH TUMOR - A CASE-REPORT

The glandular peripheral nerve sheath tumor is a rare variant of nerve sheath neoplasms in which the focally occurring glands are lined by c ells showing divergent differentiation. The vast majority of the repor ted nerve sheath tumors harboring these glands have been malignant. We herein present a case of benign glandular peripheral nerve sheath tum or in a 43-year-old woman who had no evidence of von Recklinghausen's disease. Histologically, the tumor is composed of spindle cell compone nt and collections of glandular component. The glandular component occ upied the central two-thirds of the lesion and was lined by a single l ayer of nonciliated cuboidal or columnar cells. No mitotic figures wer e recognized in the spindle cell area. This spindle cell area had neur ofibroma-like features rather than schwannoma. Many of the spindle cel ls bad positive reaction products for S-100 protein. The glandular lin ing epithelium were positive for cytokeratins (CAM 5.2, AE1/AE3, PKK1) and EMA. Some epithelial cells were immunoreactive for CEA, chromogra nin, somatostatin and Leu-7. These immunohistochemical findings suppor t the neuroendocrine differentiation of the epithelial element from th e schwannian component.