[Angiosarcoma arised from a solitary schwannoma of the chest wall]

Angiosarcomas rarely develop within a peripheral nerve or a peripheral nerve sheath tumor. A 68-year-old woman was admitted for right hemothorax. She had suffered from the left thoracic empyema and the right chest wall tumor which had been regarded as schwannoma clinically. Anemia got serious due to continuous bloody effusion. Although bleeding point was not detected by thoracotomy. The right chest wall tumor was resected. Postoperatively bloody effusion still drained continuously, she died ten days after the operation. Resected tumor was almost necrotized. The tumor was diagnosed as angiosarcoma pathologically, in which a part of schwannoma component resided. It is indicated that angiosarcoma in this case arised from degenerated schwannoma. It is necessary to consider angiosarcoma, rarely arised from degenerated schwannoma, during conservative, long-term observation on the care of schwannoma.