[Benign glandular schwannoma and Recklinghausen disease. Report of a case]

The authors describe the case of a 32 year-old woman with a congenital neurofibromatosis referred for excision of a painful subcutaneous nodule of the left popliteal space. The histological study showed a tumor displaying a biphasic pattern made of fascicles of benign spindle cells admixed with mucinous epithelium. Immunohistochemistry (cytokeratin X, ECA X) and electron microscopy helped to prove the true epithelial nature of the glandular components. Glandular schwannoma has rarely been described, especially in a benign histological pattern; this one has never been reported in association with Von Recklinghausen's disease. The histogenesis of the glandular schwannoma remains uncertain.