[Mediastinal schwannoma originating from the intrathoracic vagal nerve--a case report and review of the literature].

A 31-year-old woman was operated upon with the diagnosis of mediastinal tumor. The resected specimen revealed pathologically benign schwannoma originating from the right intrathoracic vagal nerve. The postoperative course was uneventful with no complication. Mediastinal schwannoma arising from the vagal nerve is rare. We discussed characteristics of this disease and reviewed the Japanese literature.