Mediastinum - Ganglioneuroma

Home Chapter Home Jobs Conferences Fellowships Books

Mediastinum

Other benign / low grade tumors

Ganglioneuroma

Reviewer: Hanni Gulwani, M.D. (see Reviewers page)
Revised: 1 March 2013, last major update December 2012
Copyright: (c) 2003-2013, PathologyOutlines.com, Inc.

General
=========================================================================

● Benign neural tumor; more common than neuroblastoma or ganglioneuroblastoma

Epidemiology
=========================================================================

● Usually children; also age 20-39 years

Clinical features
=========================================================================

● No symptoms in most cases
● Rarely watery diarrhea from vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) synthesis or symptoms of spinal nerve root compression
● Clinical diagnosis is aided by integrating age, clinical findings, location, imaging (AJR Am J Roentgenol 2011;197:W643)

Case reports
=========================================================================

● 8 year old boy with ganglioneuroblastoma (J Med Case Rep 2011;5:322)
● 34 year old man whose tumor had perineural cell differentiation (Cesk Patol 2012;48:94)
● 45 year old woman with 21 cm tumor (Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg 2011;13:344)

Treatment
=========================================================================

● Excision is curative

Gross description
=========================================================================

● Encapsulated, glistening tumor
● May have intradural growth and dumbbell shape
● Soft, yellow-gray cut surface, may have cystic and fatty areas, usually no necrosis

Gross images
=========================================================================

21 cm ganglioneuroma

Well-circumscribed tumor with whorled appearance

Micro description
=========================================================================

● Spindle cell (schwannian) proliferation similar to neurofibroma, but with well-formed ganglion cells, often in clusters and multinucleated
● Focal lymphocytes present

Micro images
=========================================================================

Proliferation of spindled Schwann cells and scattered ganglion cells

Positive stains
=========================================================================

● Synaptophysin (ganglion cells)

End of Mediastinum > Other benign / low grade tumors > Ganglioneuroma

This information is intended for physicians and related personnel, who understand that medical information is often imperfect, and must be interpreted in the context of a patient's clinical data using reasonable medical judgment. This website should not be used as a substitute for the advice of a licensed physician.

All information on this website is protected by copyright of PathologyOutlines.com, Inc. Information from third parties may also be protected by copyright. Please contact us at copyrightPathOut@gmail.com with any questions (click here for other contact information).