title: Value of cerebrospinal fluid cytology for the diagnosis of malignancies in the central nervous system.
abstract: The authors present a retrospective analysis of the results of the cytological examinations of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples and tumor-cyst aspirates deriving from 262 patients treated for malignant intracranial primary and secondary tumors, and vertebral and peridural metastastic processes. Positive preoperative CSF samples were found in 15.3% of all cases of primary cerebral malignancies (13.9% of all gliomas) and positive postoperative CSF samples were found in 40% (91% of the medulloblastoma cases). In all cases of single or multiple secondary cerebral tumors, positive preoperative CSF samples were found in 20%.
mesh_terms: D001254:Astrocytoma / Q000175:diagnosis; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000175:diagnosis; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000166:cytology*; D003581:Cytodiagnosis; D004806:Ependymoma / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D008527:Medulloblastoma / Q000175:diagnosis; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D009837:Oligodendroglioma / Q000175:diagnosis; D012509:Sarcoma / Q000175:diagnosis; D013125:Spinal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis