Diagnostic value of fine needle aspiration cytology for breast tumors

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of death from cancer in women. The accuracy of diagnosis can be increased with a combination of clinical examination, imaging diagnostics, and fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) or core needle biopsy, also known as triple test. The aim of the study was to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of FNAC in the diagnosis of breast tumors in our institution by correlating it with histopathology findings. We assessed the accuracy of 124 FNAC findings by comparing cytological diagnosis of breast masses with the diagnoses from histopathology reports obtained by surgery. Statistical analysis showed 95.1% accuracy, 97.7% sensitivity, 89.1% specificity, 95.5% positive predictive value and 94.2% negative predictive value of FNAC. Study results indicated that FNAC could be used as a highly reliable tool in the differential diagnosis of breast tumors, in combination with clinical and imaging findings, especially in developing countries with limited financial resources.

Keywords

• Fine needle aspiration cytology
• Breast
• Tumors
• Histopathology