Genomics and Models of Nerve Sheath Tumors

Nerve sheath tumors can be a significant cause of morbidity for many patients. These include benign tumors such as schwannomas diffuse and plexiform neurofibromas and atypical neurofibromas as well as the aggressive soft tissue sarcoma known as the malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST). Nerve sheath tumors occur sporadically and in the context of the clinical neuro-genetic tumor predisposition syndromes neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) and type 2 (NF2). Historically the mainstay of treatment for nerve sheath tumors has been surgery. However for both benign and malignant nerve sheath tumors there is a high recurrence rate highlighting the pressing need for novel therapies. As we have entered the genomic era the hope is that an improved understanding of the genetics and therefore the biology of these tumors will ultimately lead to therapies that result in better outcomes. In this Special Issue we include both review articles and original research related to the genomic understanding and modeling of schwannomas plexiform and diffuse neurofibromas atypical neurofibromas and malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors as well as genomic methodsbeing developed and applied to advance ourunderstanding ofthese tumors.