title: Diagnostic dilemmas in fine needle aspiration cytology of an ectopic kidney: a case report.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Congenital anomalies are easily diagnosed on radiology and rarely have an unusual presentation requiring an invasive diagnostic procedure. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC), though a well-established diagnostic technique for abdominal and retroperitoneal lesions, is fraught with several challenges and pitfalls.
  
  
  METHODS
  We report a case of a 39-year-old woman with an ectopic kidney presenting as an abdominal mass. On FNAC the cellular aspirate was misinterpreted as a paraganglioma or metastatic carcinoma.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This case highlights the fact that on FNAC, normal cellular components, especially from the kidney, provide a significant pitfall for overdiagnosis, potentially resulting in unnecessary surgical explorations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Parel, Mumbai, India.
authors.forename: Ruta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Goregaonkar
authors.forename: Seethalakshmi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Viswanathan
authors.forename: Nikhil H
authors.initials: NH
authors.lastname: Merchant
authors.forename: Hemant B
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Tongaonkar
authors.forename: Shubhada V
authors.initials: SV
authors.lastname: Kane
authors.forename: Roshni F
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Chinoy
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D044963:Biopsy, Fine-Needle; D002828:Choristoma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007668:Kidney