Laparoscopic excision in patient with retroperitoneal schwannoma: A case report

Abstract

Schwannomas are rare benign tumours that develop on the cranial or spinal nerves. They are often asymptomatic and discovered by chance following pelvic pain. MRI provides a positive diagnosis of the tumour, showing T1 hyposignal, T2 hypersignal, and heterogeneous contrast enhancement. An angioscanner and a uroscanner in the preoperative phase are useful to assess the relationship with neighbouring structures. The ideal treatment for schwannomas is complete excision with negative margins, even if it requires the sacrifice of neighbouring organs, given the risk of malignancy and the possibility of recurrence. We present a case of a retroperitoneal schwannoma located at the L5-S1 space, diagnosed by MRI following pelvic pain. The treatment involved a laparoscopic transabdominal excision, with a normal postoperative follow-up. The aim of this case report is to aid different medical teams in the management of schwannomas and to highlight the advantages of the laparoscopic anterior approach for retroperitoneal tumours compared with laparotomy.