title: Palisaded encapsulated neuroma--a classic presentation of a commonly misdiagnosed neural tumor.
abstract: We present a case report of a classical presentation of palisaded encapsulated neuroma (PEN) of the skin occurring on the nasolabial crease and a review of the literature. A young woman presented with a smooth lobulated papule on the cheek enlarging over 2 years. Histologic examination revealed a well-circumscribed dermal nodule of small spindle cells with wavy nuclei arranged in fascicles, consistent with the diagnosis of PEN. PEN is a previously described, benign cutaneous neural tumour, with a histological appearance between that of a neurofibroma and a schwannoma. Though not uncommon, PEN remains under-diagnosed by many pathologists. Clinically, PEN is most commonly misdiagnosed as a basal cell carcinoma, a nevus, or as a neurofibroma.
authors.affiliation: Division of Dermatology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, USA.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Golod
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Soriano
authors.forename: Noah
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Craft
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D009463:Neuroma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D009363:Neoplasm Proteins