Sporadic primary malignant intracerebral nerve sheath tumors: case report and literature review.

We report the case of a seventy-five year old woman with a sporadic primary malignant intracerebral nerve sheath tumor (MINST). These tumors fall within the spectrum of malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNST) but confirming the diagnosis of a MINST can be difficult due to its rarity and unusual intraparenchymal location. Radiographically, MINST's mimic malignant glioma and should be considered in the differential diagnosis of enhancing cerebral lesions. In this report, we present a comprehensive panel of histological, immunohistochemical, ultrastructural, and genetic considerations that may be used to diagnosis MINST based on their similarities to MPNSTs and brain parenchyma location.