Utility of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology in the Evaluation of Breast Lesions

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 222 breast aspirates were studied. Histo-cytopathological correlations were obtained in 91 cases. All the aspirates were stained with Haematoxylin and Eosin (H andE) stain. Results: Among 222 patients, 217 were females and 5 were males. Benign breast lesions were found in 144 cases (64.87%); among which fibroadenoma (30.18%) was the commonest lesion which was observed. Malignancy was observed in 69 cases (31.08%); among them, ductal carcinoma was the predominant lesion (29.28%) which was seen. Histopathological confirmations were obtained in 90 cases out of 91 cases in which histocytopathological corrections were possible. All 45 malignant aspirates were confirmed by histopathology. Benign reports were confirmed in 45 out of 46 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 97.82% and 100% respectively, with 100% positive predictive value and 97.85% negative predictive value. Diagnostic accuracy of FNAC in the present study was found to be 98.90%. 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.