Case Report
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2020. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Nov 26, 2020; 8(22): 5611-5617
Published online Nov 26, 2020. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v8.i22.5611
Multiple schwannomas with pseudoglandular element synchronously occurring under the tongue: A case report
Yong-Lin Chen, Deng-Qi He, Hai-Xia Yang, Yu Dou
Yong-Lin Chen, Department of Pathology, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
Deng-Qi He, Department of Oral Surgery, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
Hai-Xia Yang, Department of Pathology, Gansu General Hospital of Armed Police, Lanzhou 730030, Gansu Province, China
Yu Dou, Department of Radiology, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China
Author contributions: Chen YL and He DQ conceptualized the manuscript; Chen YL, He DQ, and Yang HX curated the data; Chen YL, He DQ, and Dou Y supported the methodology; He DQ supervised this study; Chen YL and He DQ validated the study; Chen YL and Yang HX wrote the original draft.
Supported by Basic Clinical Fund Project of The Fist Hospital of Lanzhou University, No. ldyyyn2015-04.
Informed consent statement: Informed written consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this case report and accompanying images.
Conflict-of-interest statement: No benefits in any form have been received or will be received from a commercial party related directly or indirect to the subject of this article.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read the CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Yong-Lin Chen, MD, PhD, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Pathology, The First Hospital of Lanzhou University, No.1 Donggangxi Road, Chengguan District, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu Province, China. chenyonglin01234@163.com
Received: July 21, 2020
Peer-review started: July 21, 2020
First decision: August 8, 2020
Revised: August 19, 2020
Accepted: October 1, 2020
Article in press: October 1, 2020
Published online: November 26, 2020
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Schwannoma is a rare benign, encapsulated tumor of the nerve sheath under the tongue, mostly occurring as solitary tumors with classical histological pattern and several common morphological variants. To our knowledge, multiple schwannomas with pseudoglandular element synchronously occurring under the tongue are rare; we report herein the first such case.

CASE SUMMARY

A 53-year-old man had first noticed an isolated asymptomatic mass under the tongue, and as the mass grew, the tongue was elevated. Physical examination showed multiple oval neoplasms, and the overlying mucosa was normal. Computed tomography showed three low-density oval neoplasms under the tongue, which were cystic-solid with unclear boundary. The patient has no cutaneous tumors, VIII nerve tumors, or lens opacities and no history of neurofibromatosis 2 or confirmed schwannomatosis in any first-degree relative. Magnetic resonance imaging showed no evidence of vestibular schwannoma. The preoperative diagnosis was mucoepidermoid carcinoma. During hospitalization, all neoplasms were completely excised by surgeons through an intraoral approach under general anesthesia. The diagnosis of the multiple schwannomas with pseudoglandular element was made by histopathology after surgery. At the 15-mo follow-up visit, the patient had no sign of recurrence or development of other peripheral nerve tumors.

CONCLUSION

Although rare, multiple schwannomas with pseudoglandular element do exist in patients presenting with masses under the tongue. Oral surgeons should be aware of the existence of multiple schwannomas with pseudoglandular element when considering masses under the tongue due to the different prognosis between multiple schwannomas with pseudoglandular element and mucoepidermoid carcinoma.

Keywords: Case report, Multiple schwannomas, Pseudoglandular variant, Tongue, Mucoepidermoid carcinoma

Core Tip: Schwannoma is a rare benign, encapsulated tumor of the nerve sheath under the tongue and mostly occurs as solitary tumors with classical histological pattern and several common morphological variants. Multiple schwannomas with pseudoglandular element synchronously occurring under the tongue are of great rarity. Here, we present the first report of a case of multiple schwannomas with pseudoglandular element synchronously occurring under the tongue.