Neuroma

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Overview
Neuroma originally was defined as a tumor of a nerve. (Neuro- is from the Greek for nerve). Today, neuroma commonly refers to any tumor of cells of the nervous system. though some use the term only to describe tumors of the cell of the nerve and related fibers.

Because of the ambiguity inherent to the term, it is usually better to use a more specific description when possible.

Neuromas can be either benign or malignant.

Non-tumors
Although the "-oma" suffix usually is usually reserved for tumors, the term "neuroma" is also sometimes used for conditions that are not usually considered tumorous:


 * Traumatic neuroma follows different forms of nerve injury (often as a result of surgery). They occur at the end of injured nerve fibres as a form of uneffective, unregulated nerve regeneration; it occurs most commonly near a scar, either superficially (skin, subcutaneous fat) or deep (e.g., after a cholecystectomy). They are often very painful. It is also known as "pseudoneuroma".


 * Morton's neuroma (a mononeuropathy of the foot) is not considered a tumor in modern sources, and therefore cannot be considered a true neuroma. The name is entrenched, and remains commonly used, but "Morton's metatarsalgia" is more accurate.

True tumors
According to ICD-O and MeSH, the term "Neuroma" refers to a nerve sheath tumor. Subtypes include:


 * Neurinoma (Neurilemmoma) - a benign slow growing tumor of the neurolemma (myelin sheath) of a nerve fibre.


 * Acoustic neurinoma (or "acoustic neuroma")

Ganglioneuroma could be considered a type of neuroma, though it is not a nerve sheath tumor.