Neurilemmoma arising in the brachial plexus in association with breast cancer: report of case

A 48-year-old woman without von Recklinghausen's disease presented to our department for investigation of a left breast lump and a lump in the left axilla. A presumptive diagnosis of left breast cancer with axillary lymph node involvement was made based on the findings of physical examination and needle biopsy of the left breast lump. However, on exploration we discovered that the axillary lump was a neurogenic tumor arising in the brachial plexus. Enucleation of the neurogenic tumor, which was subsequently histologically confirmed as neurilemmoma, as well as a modified radical mastectomy, was performed. Postoperatively, the patient experienced slight numbness in her left second and third fingers, but this symptom improved within 5 months. When last seen 21 months after her operation, there were no signs of recurrence of either the breast cancer or the neurilemmoma.