Cytological evaluation of breast lesions: Can it still go the long way?

Abstract

Background: Breast lesions are a common occurrence in women of all age groups. Geographically, the occurrence of non-neoplastic and neoplastic lesions varies. The accurate diagnosis of individual cases has garnered importance over the years owing to a steep rise in neoplastic occurrences. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) has been a useful component in the diagnostic panel of palpable breast lesions. Materials & Method: Present work was carried out in the department of pathology, of a tertiary rural care hospital, over a period of one year from January 2015 to December 2015. FNAC was performed on all the patients presenting with palpable breast lesions. Smears were prepared and studied under light microscopy under clinical and radiological guidance. All the data was then studied and analyzed. Results: FNAC was performed on 171 cases. Cytologically, we categorized all the lesions as infectious/ inflammatory with 19 (11.11%), benign 76(44.44%), suspicious for malignancy 04 (2.33%), malignant with 62 (36.25%) and 09 (5.26%) unsatisfactory cases. Mean age of presentation was 45.5 years with left breast being more commonly involved. Histopathological correlation was possible in 111 (64.91%) cases. High sensitivity and specificity was observed. Conclusion: FNAC still remains a reliable, cost-effective, patient friendly and minimally invasive method. The application of FNAC as a diagnostic modality in palpable breast lesions should be all the more encouraged in routine practice.