Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2008 Feb 29:3:6.
doi: 10.1186/1749-7221-3-6.

Pain as a symptom of peripheral nerve sheath tumors: clinical significance and future therapeutic directions

Michael E Sughrue  1 , Jon Levine, Nicholas M Barbaro
Affiliations

Pain as a symptom of peripheral nerve sheath tumors: clinical significance and future therapeutic directions

Michael E Sughrue et al. J Brachial Plex Peripher Nerve Inj. .

Abstract

Tumors arising from the supporting cells of peripheral nerve sheaths are relatively uncommon neoplasms, and as such many clinicians are unfamiliar with the details of their presentation, diagnosis and management. Further, little is known regarding the pathogenesis of these tumors, how they cause symptoms, and how to treat these symptoms. One classic symptom of peripheral nerve tumors is pain, however there has been little formal discussion regarding the significance of pain in this setting. Here we present a brief review of the clinical significance of pain, its relevance in pre-operative planning for the treatment of these tumors, and what is known regarding the molecular mechanisms of pain generation by these tumors.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic representation of possible mechanisms of algogenesis in the setting of nerve sheath tumors. Mechanisms depicted include: (A) Ectopic mechanosensitivity possibly due to increase in local concentrations of the Nav 1.4 sodium channel leading to increased axonal transmission in response to mechanical stimulation, (B) Continuous secretion of chemical algogens leading to rest pain in the absence of stimulus, (C) Aberrant axonal sprouting which fire pain stimuli constitutively.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Ogose A, Hotta T, Morita T, Yamamura S, Hosaka N, Kobayashi H, Hirata Y. Tumors of peripheral nerves: correlation of symptoms, clinical signs, imaging features, and histologic diagnosis. Skeletal radiology. 1999;3(4):183–188. doi: 10.1007/s002560050498. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Kim DH, Murovic JA, Tiel RL, Kline DG. Operative outcomes of 546 Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center peripheral nerve tumors. Neurosurgery clinics of North America. 2004;3(2):177–192. doi: 10.1016/j.nec.2004.02.006. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Valeyrie-Allanore L, Ismaili N, Bastuji-Garin S, Zeller J, Wechsler J, Revuz J, Wolkenstein P. Symptoms associated with malignancy of peripheral nerve sheath tumours: a retrospective study of 69 patients with neurofibromatosis 1. The British journal of dermatology. 2005;3(1):79–82. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2133.2005.06558.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Kim DH, Murovic JA, Tiel RL, Kline DG. Management and outcomes in 318 operative common peroneal nerve lesions at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center. Neurosurgery. 2004;3(6):1421–8; discussion 1428-9. doi: 10.1227/01.NEU.0000124752.40412.03. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Fein DA, Lee WR, Lanciano RM, Corn BW, Herbert SH, Hanlon AL, Hoffman JP, Eisenberg BL, Coia LR. Management of extremity soft tissue sarcomas with limb-sparing surgery and postoperative irradiation: do total dose, overall treatment time, and the surgery-radiotherapy interval impact on local control? International journal of radiation oncology, biology, physics. 1995;3(4):969–976. - PubMed