Histopathological and immunohistochemical analysis of lung tumors: description of a convenient technique for use with fine needle biopsy.
In this paper we describe a convenient procedure for use with fine-needle biopsy in the diagnosis of lung and medistinal tumors. Cells obtained from a fine-needle aspiration are suspended in a formaldehyde solution and allowed to sediment onto a polycarbonate filter, using a filtering device specially designed for this purpose. The filter with the aspirated cells is then embedded in paraffin and thereafter sectioned and stained in a routine manner. The main advantages with this technique, instead of cytology, are: 1. the cells are kept mainly intact, mostly in undisrupted clusters, and this increases the possibility of obtaining a specific diagnosis, a prerequisite for the diversified clinical management of malignant tumors: 2. possibilities exist, when necessary, of further immunohistochemical characterization of tumor cells in order to obtain a specific diagnosis without thoractomy. This could be of major importance when the management of certain tumors and infiltrates (i.e. those preferably treated by radio- and chemotherapy) does not require surgical intervention.
Nordgren
H
H
Dept. of Clinical Pathology, Central Hospital, Västerås, Sweden.
Nilsson
S
S
Runn
A C
AC
Ponten
J
J
Bergh
J
J
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D005260:Female; D006652:Histological Techniques; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000032:analysis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged