Fine needle aspiration of poorly defined indurated and well-defined breast lesions: a cytopathologic comparative study.
OBJECTIVE
To compare the cytologic findings and diagnoses of breast fine needle aspiration (FNA) samples of well-defined lesions (WDL) with those of poorly defined indurated lesions.


METHODS
We examined 371 consecutive breast FNA specimens obtained without diagnostic image guidance. Fifty-eight lesions were described by the examining pathologists as PDILs, and the remaining 313 lesions were described as WDLs.


RESULTS
Compared with WDLs, PDILs were more likely to yield hypocellular specimens deemed unsatisfactory for diagnostic evaluation (37.9% vs. 14.1%). However, a substantial number of atypical, suspicious for malignancy and malignant cases (12.1%, 5.2%, and 13.8%, respectively) were identified with PDILs. In addition, benign diagnoses were more frequently rendered with aspirates of WDLs, compared with PDILs (47.9% vs. 31.0%). In our study, FNAs of PDILs were more often diagnostic in white women < 49 years of age and in lesions measuring > 2 cm.


CONCLUSIONS
Given the relatively high frequency of malignant, suspicious and atypical lesions detected with PDILs, FNA is a suitable first diagnostic approach for PDILs, especially considering the relatively low cost and simplicity of FNA procedures without diagnostic imaging guidance.
Takei
Hidehiro
H
Department of Pathology, The Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas 77030, USA. takei327@aol.com
Ruiz
Bernardo
B
Dancer
Jane
J
Hicks
John
J
D000368:Aged; D044963:Biopsy, Fine-Needle; D001940:Breast / Q000473:pathology*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D044469:Racial Groups