[Hybrid schwannoma/perineurioma: a clinicopathological analysis of 35 cases]

Objective: To investigate the clinical pathological features, pathological diagnosis and differential diagnosis of hybrid schwannoma/perineurioma. Methods: The clinicopathological data of 35 cases were collected at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, from October 2010 to August 2017; morphological observation and immunohistochemical staining were performed, and the literatures were also reviewed. Results: There were 7 males and 28 females (male∶female=1∶4), patients with onset age ranging from 3 to 81 years(mean=36 years). Of 35 tumors, 11 cases occurred in the head and neck, 10 in the extremities, 9 in the trunk, 4 in the intestine, and 1 in the labiamajora, respectively. Clinically, most patients presented as a slowly growing dermal nodule, sometimes associated with pain. The duration of symptoms ranged from 1 month to 20 years before excision. Tumor size ranged from 0.8 cm to 6.0 cm (mean=2.6 cm). Microscopically, the tumors were usually well circumscribed but unencapsulated. At low power, most tumors were located in the dermis or subcutis, and several cases in the submucosal tissues. The tumors were composed of fascicular, storiform or whorled growth of closely intermixed plump spindle cells and slender spindle cells. The plump spindle cells had ill-defined eosinophilic cytoplasm with larger tapered or wavy nuclei, whereas the slender spindle cells had comparatively delicate nuclei with elongated cytoplasmic processes. Tumor cells had no obvious atypia, and mitoses were rare. Scattered large cells with degenerative nuclear atypia were seen in some cases. By immunohistochemistry, most of plump spindle cells showed strong staining of S-100 protein(35/35) and SOX10(8/9), whereas slender spindle cells stained variably for epithelial membrane antigen(31/35), CD34(32/33), Claudin-1 (15/15) and GLUT-1(8/8). Ki-67 proliferation index were all less than 5%. Follow-up data available in 16 patients (range 4 to 72 months; mean=46 months) were all free of disease, and one case developed local recurrence. Conclusions: Hybrid schwannoma/perineuriomaisa benign nerve sheath tumor that typically manifests as a dermaland subcutaneous tumor, less frequently may affect uncommon sites such as the nasal cavity, the gastro-intestinal tract, and the external genital areas. The tumors consisted of intimately admixed plump-spindled schwannian cells and slender-spindled perineurial cells showing dual differentiation of strong S-100 protein and SOX10 expression in the former component and variable immunoreactivity of epithelial membrane antigen, Claudin-1 and CD34 in the latter. It should be aware of the possibility of potentially misinterpretation of hybrid schwannoma/perineurioma as dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans and solitary fibrous tumor and so on.