title: Micronuclei in breast aspirates. Is scoring them helpful?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Micronuclei scoring can be used as a biomarker of genotoxic and chromosomal damage.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  1. To score the spontaneously occurring micronuclei in the baseline population (fibroadenomas) and infiltrating ductal carcinoma, 2. Compare micronuclei frequency in benign tumors and various grades of infiltrating ductal carcinomas.
  
  
  METHODS
  Study was done at a tertiary hospital where 40 cases of fibroadenoma and 40 cases of infiltrating ductal carcinoma were taken up. May Grunwald Giemsa stained smears were analyzed for micronuclei scoring.
  
  
  METHODS
  Independent sample test (Student t test) was done to look for significant difference occurring between the controls among all grades of infiltrating ductal carcinoma.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean micronuclei range in fibroadenoma was 1.8 ± 1.9. It was 12.1 ± 9.2, 27.4 ± 27.2 and 100 ± 36.5 in grade I, grade II and grade III carcinomas respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An increase in micronuclei values was seen from fibroadenoma to infiltrating ductal carcinoma. Micronuclei scoring can be used as a biomarker on fine needle aspiration cytology smears of breast carcinoma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Sri Devaraj Urs Medical College, Tamaka, Kolar, Karnataka, India.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hemalatha
authors.forename: T N
authors.initials: TN
authors.lastname: Suresh
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: HarendraKumar
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D044963:Biopsy, Fine-Needle; D001940:Breast / Q000473:pathology; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D018270:Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D048629:Micronuclei, Chromosome-Defective; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012424:Rural Population; D055815:Young Adult