Symptomatic pericardial schwannoma treated with video-assisted thoracic surgery: a case report

Intrathoracic schwannomas are neurogenic tumors derived from the Schwann cells of the nerve sheath, most often seen in the posterior mediastinum with anatomical correlations to nerves. Although they are typically benign, a malignant transformation can occur, and thoracotomy instead of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) is required to achieve a complete resection. Only a few cases of pericardial schwannoma have been reported so far. We present a rare case of pericardial schwannoma confirmed by video-assisted thoracoscopic resection.