Intracerebral schwannoma in a 16-year-old girl: a case report and review of the literature.

Intracerebral schwannomas are rare tumors of the CNS. We report a rare case of intracerebral schwannoma, presenting as a cystic and solid frontoparietal mass, arising in a 16-year-old girl. The patient presented seizures and headache. Neuroradiologic findings showed a left frontoparietal lesion with cystic and tissular components. The tumor was removed through a left frontoparietal craniotomy. Histological features confirmed the diagnosis of intracerebral schwannoma. Intracerebral schwannomas, unrelated to cranial nerves, are rare. The Schwann cells are not indigenous to brain substance, and hence histogenesis of these tumours has attracted a lot of speculation, but because most reported cases have involved young patients, a developmental origin has been suggested. The theories and literature related to this case are reviewed.