title: On the limited value of fine-needle aspiration for the diagnosis of benign melanocytic proliferations of the skin.
abstract: This a retrospective study of 39 patients with pigmented cutaneous lesions with a subsequent histologic diagnosis of melanocytic neoplasia. The most important cytologic features seen in the fine-needle aspirates were assessed in the 26 cases deemed satisfactory for evaluation. Though cytology, along with essential clinical data, could enable a general diagnosis of melanocytic lesion and could differentiate it from other nonmelanocytic pigmented lesions, cytology could not provide a precise diagnosis of the different histologic types of benign melanocytic nevi, nor could it enable their differentiation from dysplastic melanocytic nevi or incipient malignant melanoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Rosell Hospital, Cartagena, Spain.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: García Rojo
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: García Solano
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sánchez Sánchez
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Montalbán Romero
authors.forename: V V
authors.initials: VV
authors.lastname: Ortega
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pérez-Guillermo
mesh_terms: D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D002455:Cell Division; D015622:Epithelioid Cells; D006801:Humans; D008544:Melanocytes / Q000166:cytology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012867:Skin / Q000166:cytology*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*