Intracisternal schwannoma of the spinal accessory nerve: a case report.

We report the details of a patient with an intracisternal schwannoma that developed from the spinal accessory nerve. The patient, a 70-year-old women, presented with a 5-year history of intermittent headache and neck pain. A 3.2 x 2.5 cm partially cystic mass was found in the right cervicomedullary cistern. It was removed through a far-lateral inferior suboccipital craniotomy using image-guidance. The tumor arose from one rootlet of the right accessory nerve and histological examination confirmed the diagnosis of a schwannoma. Removal of the schwannoma did not result in a significant neurological deficit.