Benign esophageal schwannoma: Report of a case

We report herein the case of an otherwise asymptomatic 62-year-old woman wh o was found to have an incidental esophageal lesion during endoscopic follo w-up of an unrelated disorder. An esophageal submucosal tumor was diagnosed , and the patient was subsequently monitored on a regular yearly basis. As the diameter of the tumor doubled over a 4-year period, the possibility of a malignant lesion could not be excluded, and she was admitted to our hospi tal for further investigations. Esophagography, endoscopy, endoscopic ultra sonography, and computed tomography confirmed a submucosal tumor, 35 mm in length, in the thoracic mid-esophagus, A leiomyoma or leiomyosarcoma was su spected based on the known incidence of such tumors, and tumor enucleation was performed. Gross inspection revealed a solid tumor arising from the wal l of the esophagus, Histopathologic examination showed intertwined bundles of spindle cells with spiral-like proliferation, and immunohistochemical st udies were positive for S-100 protein, whereby a diagnosis of esophageal sc hwannoma was established. The patient experienced no postoperative complica tions, and her clinical course to date has been satisfactory. To date, 2 ye ars 8 months after surgery, she has shown no sign of tumor recurrence and r emains in good health.