EPIBULBAR GRANULAR-CELL TUMOR - REPORT OF A CASE AND REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Background: The granular cell tumor (GCT) is a common, usually benign, neoplasm of uncertain histogenesis that may affect any organ in the b ody. It occurs rarely in ophthalmic sites, where orbital location is m ost frequent, The purpose of this report is to describe a unique case of an epibulbar, subconjunctival GCT in a child. Method: Histopatholog ic examination of the excised tumor included standard and immunohistoc hemical staining of formaldehyde-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue.Resul ts: Histopathologic study showed the characteristic morphology of GCT. Immunohistochemistry was strongly positive for vimentin, weakly and p artly positive for neuron-specific enolase, and negative for 5-100 and HAM-56. Conclusions: Granular cell tumor must be added to the differe ntial diagnosis of epibulbar masses, Immunohistochemistry of the tumor in this case suggests an uncommitted mesenchymal cell origin.