Abstract

Dr. Ayushi Narain* and Dr. S. Marylilly

ABSTRACT

Background: Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) is a simple, minimally invasive, cost effective, outpatient based and a rapid diagnostic method for breast lesions. The aim of the present study was to correlate cytological findings with histopathological findings and to determine the accuracy of FNAC in the diagnosis of breast lesions. Material and Methods: A total of 109 breast aspirates were studied. Histo-cytopathological correlations were obtained in 62 cases. All the aspirates were stained with Haematoxylin and Eosin (H andE) stain. Results: Among 109 patients, 106 were females and 3 were males. Benign breast lesions were found in 74 cases (67.9%); among which fibroadenoma (29.3%) was the commonest lesion which was observed. Malignancy was observed in 27 cases (24.7%); among them, ductal carcinoma was the predominant lesion (23%) which was seen. Histopathological confirmations were obtained in 71 cases out of 72 cases. All 35 malignant aspirates were confirmed by histopathology. Benign reports were confirmed in 35 out of 36 cases by doing histological examinations; except one case which was diagnosed as malignant by studying its histopathology. Sensitivity and specificity of FNAC in breast lesions were reported to be 97.2% and 100% respectively. Conclusion: It is important to remember that a negative FNAC of a breast lesion does not preclude the diagnosis of a carcinoma, particularly in presence of a clinical suspicion of malignancy and/or an abnormal mammogram.