Malignant cervical schwannoma: An unusual pelvic tumor

Background. Primary malignant cervical schwannomas (malignant peripheral ne rve sheath tumors) are extremely rare tumors that grossly may resemble many other more, common lesions. The diagnosis, management and follow-up of a m alignant cervical schwannoma are presented with a review of the literature. Case. A 51-year-old female presented with a 3-year history of perimenopausa l vaginal bleeding. A 3 x 3 cm friable, spongy lesion was noted on the post erior aspect of the cervix. Frozen-section analysis could not rule out a ma lignant smooth muscle tumor. The patient, underwent an exploratory laparoto my, total abdominal hysterectomy, and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. Immu nohistochemistry and electron microscopy aided in the final diagnosis of a malignant cervical schwannoma. The patient is alive and well 1 year from he r definitive surgery. Another patient with the same tumor received the same surgical management. This patient is now 10 years from her surgery and is alive with no evidence of disease. Conclusion. Immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy are useful in the diagnosis of a malignant cervical schwannoma. This case and long-term follo w-up from another case provide evidence that simple hysterectomy may be suf ficient therapy for this uncommon lesion. (C) 1999 Academic Press.