Neurofibromas do not always have a tumor. A single neurofibroma is certain to have a tumor. While multiple neurofibromas, which are one of the clinical manifestations of neurofibromatosis, most of them have a tumor, and a very few of them do not have a tumor.
Neurofibromatosis is an autosomal dominant disease, the main cause of which is familial inheritance or mutation of genes, and is divided into neurofibromatosis type 1 and neurofibromatosis type 2.
Neurofibromatosis type 1 is mainly manifested as multiple milky coffee spots on the skin, multiple neurofibromas, which are often located in the subcutaneous area, and can also invade the nervous system, viscera and bones. Neurofibromatosis type 2 is mainly manifested as bilateral acoustic neuromas, and in the above cases, the neurofibromas are tumor-bearing.
However, there are some type 1 neurofibromas which only show typical milky coffee spots on skin, freckles in armpits and groin without tumor.
Once a neurofibroma is detected, it is recommended that the patient go to the neurosurgery department of a regular hospital and be actively treated under the guidance of the doctor.