title: Perineural extension of cutaneous desmoplastic melanoma mimicking an intracranial malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor. Case report.
abstract: The authors present a case illustrating the importance of obtaining a biopsy of any facial skin lesions in a patient presenting with an intracranial tumor involving the facial or trigeminal nerve. Conventional malignant melanoma metastasizes to the brain frequently and does not usually pose diagnostic difficulties. Direct intracranial spread of cutaneous melanoma is rare. In our patient, desmoplastic melanoma with perineural spread to the Meckel cave mimicked a malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor clinically, radiographically, and histologically.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, USA. Sam.Barnett@utsouthwestern.edu
authors.forename: Samuel L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Barnett
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Wells
authors.forename: Bruce
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mickey
authors.forename: Kimmo J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Hatanpaa
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000473:pathology*; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness / Q000473:pathology; D018317:Nerve Sheath Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D010525:Peripheral Nerves / Q000473:pathology*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*