Role of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology in Breast Lesions in Correlation with Histopathology – A 4 Years Study

ABSTRACT

Background: Breast lesions are most common among women, where majority of the breast lesions are benign. Even though most of the breast lesions are benign; malignant lesions are most concern, as because they are commonest malignant lesions especially among western population. Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) has proved to be a safe cost effective, good screening and quick procedure for early diagnosis of palpable breast lesions. Aim: The aim of this present study is to diagnosis different categories of various breast lesions and correlation of FNAC and Histopathological diagnosis. Methods: This study was done on 224 breast lesions with palpable breast swellings referred to Department of Pathology, Government Medical College, Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh over a period of 4 years from January 2015 to December 2018. Lesions were categorised as per cytomorphological features obtained on FNAC. Histopathological correlation was assessed in all breast lesions, inclusive of all malignant cases. Results: Out of 224 breast lesions, 178 (79.46%) cases were categorized as Benign and 39 (17.4%) cases as malignant, 7 cases (3.12%) are inflammatory. Most common benign lesions are fibroadenoma i.e., 54%. Most common malignant lesions are Infiltrating duct cell carcinoma, it was 16.96%. Uncommon malignant lesion is medullary carcinoma, it was 0.44%. Out of 224 palpable breast lesions, 203 (90.63%) diagnosed by histopathology were consistent with FNAC. Conclusion: FNAC is safe, cost effective, good screening, quick outpatient procedure with high sensitivity & sensitivity and histopathology is a confirmatory diagnosis and especially it can help to confirm suspicious malignant cases.