Diagnostic Significance of Ultrasound-Guided Fine-Needle Aspiration Biopsy and on-Site Assessment by Pathologists for Thyroid Micronodules.

Objective: Ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (US-FNAB) is a safe and effective method for screening malignant thyroid nodules. The purpose of this study was to compare the diagnostic effectiveness of US-FNAB for nodules of different sizes. Methods: A total of 1085 patients with thyroid nodules who underwent US-FNAB between January 2021 and July 2023 were included in the study. The patients were divided into three groups based on the maximum diameter of the nodules: there were 324 patients with thyroid nodules ≤5 mm in Group A, 537 patients with thyroid nodules between 6 mm and 10 mm in Group B, and 224 patients with thyroid nodules >10 mm in Group C. The US-FNAB satisfactory specimen rate, biopsy time and cytopathological results for the three groups were collected and compared with the postoperative pathological results. Results: The US-FNAB satisfactory specimen rates for Groups A, B and C were 84.57% (274/324), 90.13% (484/537) and 94.64% (212/224), respectively. The average biopsy times for Groups A, B, and C were 100.84 ± 41.58 s, 91.20 ± 32.53 s, and 79.01 ± 29.62 s, respectively. In Groups A, B, and C, 103, 192 and 73 patients, respectively, underwent surgery, and the malignancy rates were 88.35%, 85.42% and 72.6%, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of US-FNAB in Group A were 78.26%, 81.82%, 97.30%, 31.03%; respectively; those in Group B were 73.78%,85.71%,96.80%, and 35.82%, respectively; and those in Group C were 75.47%, 85.00%, 93.02% and 56.67%, respectively. Conclusion: The US-FNAB satisfactory specimen rate for thyroid nodules ≤5 mm was relatively low, but the size of nodules had no effect on the diagnostic sensitivity of US-FNAB; additionally, nodules ≤5 mm had a higher probability of malignancy. Therefore, it is necessary to perform US-FNAB for thyroid nodules with a diameter ≤5 mm with malignant signs.

Comparison between Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology with Histopathology in the Diagnosis of Thyroid Nodules.

BACKGROUND: Accurate diagnosis of thyroid nodules is crucial for avoiding unnecessary surgeries and enabling timely treatment. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) and ultrasound are commonly employed diagnostic techniques, but their reliability is debated. This study aimed to compare the diagnostic accuracy of FNAC and ultrasounds using histopathology as the reference standard. METHODS: A retrospective review was conducted on 344 patients who underwent thyroidectomy between January 2017 and May 2022. An ultrasound and FNAC were performed before surgery, and histopathological findings were compared. Statistical analyses were conducted to calculate sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), false positive rate, false negative rate, and overall accuracy for each diagnostic method. RESULTS: Among the study population, 38.67% of thyroid tumors were malignant. Ultrasound showed a sensitivity of 68.18%, specificity of 76.55%, PPV of 64.74%, NPV of 79.20%, and overall accuracy of 73.31%. FNAC had a sensitivity of 89.31%, specificity of 48.44%, PPV of 78%, NPV of 68.89%, and accuracy of 75.89%. The correlation coefficient between ultrasound and FNAC was 0.512 (p < 0.0000001). Ultrasound correlated with histopathology with a coefficient of 0.408 (p < 0.0000001), while FNAC with histopathology had a coefficient of 0.304 (p < 0.00001). The correlation coefficient between these three diagnostic methods was 0.423 (p < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: In the diagnosis of thyroid nodules, both FNAC and ultrasound demonstrated moderate diagnostic accuracy. Ultrasound showed a higher specificity, while FNAC exhibited a higher sensitivity. Combining these techniques may improve diagnostic accuracy. Further research and the development of more reliable diagnostic methods are warranted to optimize the management of thyroid nodules and avoid unnecessary surgeries.

Ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration/biopsy-based pancreatic organoids establishment: an alternative model for basic and preclinical research.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), as one of the malignant cancers with the worst prognosis, is becoming the most urgent clinical problem. Due to the lack of early diagnosis and curable therapeutic methods, it is critical to exploit proper models that can capture the overall attributes of the primary tumor. Recently, organoid technology has emerged and flourished as a powerful tool to enable long-term culture of pancreatic tissues, including PDAC. As accumulating studies suggest, organoids can retain morphological, genetic, and behavioral traits, and have tremendous value in predicting the therapeutic response to conventional chemotherapy drugs or newfangled agents. Herein, this review comprehensively summarizes the tissue source including human fetal and adult pancreatic tissue to generate a pancreatic organoid as well as current organoids cultivate system. As PDAC organoids can be established from a small number of samples derived from endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration/biopsy (EUS-FNA/FNB), we also review the literature to date on EUS-FNA/FNB-based organoid constitution and its implementation in inquiring tumor behavior and evaluating therapeutic responses. By enabling the alignment of basic and clinical research platforms, the application of organoids would open up new avenues for drug discovery and maximally benefit translational medicine in the near future.

Primary Gastric Rhabdomyosarcoma.

Primary gastric rhabdomyosarcoma is extremely rare. An 87-year-old man visited our clinic with a chief complaint of abdominal pain. Computed tomography (CT) and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-CT revealed a massive tumor originating from the muscularis propria of the stomach along with splenic vein tumor thrombosis. We diagnosed the patient with primary gastric rhabdomyosarcoma by an endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration/biopsy.

Negligible procedure-related dissemination risk of mucosal incision-assisted biopsy for gastrointestinal stromal tumors versus endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration/biopsy.

BACKGROUND: Mucosal incision-assisted biopsy (MIAB) is a valuable alternative to endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration/biopsy (EUS-FNAB) for sampling gastric subepithelial lesions (SELs). This study aimed to evaluate the potential risk of dissemination and impact on postoperative prognosis associated with MIAB, which has not yet been investigated. METHODS: Study 1: A prospective observational study was conducted to examine the presence or absence and growth rate of tumor cells in gastric juice before and after the procedure in patients with SELs who underwent MIAB (n = 25) or EUS-FNAB (n = 22) between September 2018 and August 2021. Study 2: A retrospective study was conducted to examine the impact of MIAB on postoperative prognosis in 107 patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors diagnosed using MIAB (n = 39) or EUS-FNAB (n = 68) who underwent surgery between January 2001 and July 2020. RESULTS: In study 1, although no tumor cells were observed in gastric juice in MIAB before the procedure, they were observed in 64% of patients after obtaining samples (P < 0.001). In contrast, no tumor cells were observed in the gastric juice in EUS-FNAB before and after the procedure. In study 2, there was no significant difference in 5-year disease-free survival between MIAB (100%) and EUS-FNAB (97.1%) (P = 0.27). CONCLUSION: MIAB is safe, with little impact on postoperative prognosis, although the procedure releases some tumor cells after damaging the SEL's pseudocapsule.

BRAF p.V600E genetic testing based on ultrasound-guided fine-needle biopsy improves the malignancy rate in thyroid surgery: our single-center experience in the past 10 years.

PURPOSE: Ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (UG-FNAB) was implemented in Qilu Hospital of Shandong University in 2015 as a preoperative diagnostic method for thyroid surgery. BRAF p.V600E genetic testing was implemented in 2019. This study evaluated the impact of these two tests on the malignancy rate in patients undergoing thyroidectomy. METHODS: A total of 19,496 patients were included in the study. We retrospectively collected data from patients undergoing thyroid surgery in the Hospital Information System (HIS) of Qilu Hospital of Shandong University from January 2012 to December 2021. Meanwhile, data of FNAB, UG-FNAB, and BRAF p.V600E genetic testing were collected. Differences in means among groups were analyzed via one-way ANOVA, and differences in frequencies were analyzed via Pearson's chi-squared test. RESULTS: In this study, the 10-year period was divided into three stages, with the implementation of UG-FNAB in 2015 and that of BRAF p.V600E genetic testing in 2019 as dividing lines. The malignancy rate in thyroid surgery increased significantly during these three stages (48.06% vs. 73.47% vs. 88.17%; P < 0.001). In the same period (May 2019 to December 2021), the malignancy rate in thyroid surgery was significantly different between the Non-FNAB, UG-FNAB, and UG-FNAB-BRAF groups (78.87% vs. 95.63% vs. 98.32%; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The successful implementation of UG-FNAB and BRAF p.V600E genetic testing improved the malignancy rate in thyroid surgery and reduced unnecessary diagnostic surgery for benign and marginal lesions. It can, therefore, provide a clinical reference for other hospitals.

Stratifying indeterminate cytology thyroid nodules by combining Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data Systems (TI-RADS) and The Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytopathology (TBSRTC)

Objective@#To determine the risk of malignancy of Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytopathology (TBSRTC) indeterminate Thyroid Nodules (Bethesda III, IV and V) by combining cytologic (TSBRTC) and Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data Systems (TI-RADS) ultrasonographic features based on final histopathology.@*Methods@#Design: Retrospective review of records. Setting: Tertiary Private Training Hospital. Participants: 551 records. @*Results@#Among 81 eligible participants, 59 out of 84 nodules (70.24%) wer malignant on histopathology. The malignancy risk of Bethesda classification was 60.87% (28 out of 46) for Bethesda III, 57.14% (8 out of 14) for Bethesda IV and 95.83% for Bethesda V. The malignancy risk for TI-RADS categories was 0 % (0/1) for TI-RADS 2, 50% (10 out of 20) for TI-RADS 3, 71.05 % for TI-RADS 4 and 91.67 % for TI-RADS 5. The highest risk of malignancy (100%) was associated with [Bethesda IV/TI-RADS 1, 2, and 3], [Bethesda V/TI-RADS 1, 2 and 3 [Bethesda IV and V/TI-RADS 1, 2 and 3] and [Bethesda IV/TI-RADS 5]. The lowest risk of malignancy (33.33%) was associated with [Bethesda III/TI-RADS1, 2 and 3]. A high Bethesda classification (Bethesda V) was almost 5x more likely to have a malignant anatomorphology compared with Bethesda III (p = .05) while a TI-RADS 4 or 5 category was almost 5x more likely to have a malignant anatomorphology compared to TI-RADS 1, 2 or 3 (p = .026).@*Conclusion@#This study showed that TI-RADS scoring is a sensitive diagnostic classification in recognizing patients with thyroid cancer and combining Bethesda classification and TI-RADS scoring increases the sensitivity in the diagnosis of malignant thyroid nodules. A higher likelihood of malignancy is associated with higher Bethesda classification and TI-RADS scoring.

Building an USGFNA clinic from scratch: A recipe from the USGFNA cookbook for successes.

Cytopathologist optimized ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy (USGFNA) seeks to integrate all available sonographic and cytologic information into a single diagnostic report, usually ending with a final statement that the biopsy does or does not explain the clinical, sonographic and cytologic features of the nodule. The experience needed to fully realize this goal is best acquired in a dedicated USGFNA clinic. There the cytologist reviews the clinical record, available sonographic images and reports, personally performs a sonographic evaluation resulting in ACR 2017 TIRADS cancer risk assessment of each nodule, identifies the one or two nodules with TIRADS indication for biopsy, the samples the nodule(s) under sonographic guidance, creates well-crafted distortion free smears, completes the microscopic evaluation, and writes a final comprehensive report. This review draws on my personal and published experience in introducing cytopathologists to USGFNA and presents ten specific items for which a cytopathologist needs to acquire both background knowledge and technical skill to successfully introduce USGFNA into an existing pathology practice. This review is written from the perspective of the head and neck clinic but can be adapted to any site appropriate for USGFNA.

Technical Performance, Overall Accuracy and Complications of EUS-Guided Interventional Procedures: A Dynamic Landscape.

Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) gained wide acceptance as the diagnostic and minimally invasive therapeutic approach for intra-luminal and extraluminal gastrointestinal, as well as various non-gastrointestinal lesions. Since its introduction, EUS has undergone substantial technological advances. This multi-centric study is a retrospective analysis of a prospectively maintained database of patients who underwent EUS for the evaluation of lesions located within the gastrointestinal tract and the proximal organs. It aimed to extensively assess in dynamic the dual-center EUS experience over the course of the past 20 years. Hence, we performed a population study and an overall assessment of the EUS procedures. The performance of EUS-FNA/FNB in diagnosing pancreatic neoplasms was evaluated. We also investigated the contribution of associating contrast-enhanced ultrasound imaging (CE-EUS) with EUS-FNA/FNB for differentiating solid pancreatic lesions or cystic pancreatic lesions. A total of 2935 patients undergoing EUS between 2002-2021 were included, out of which 1880 were diagnostic EUS and 1052 EUS-FNA/FNB (80% FNA and 20% FNB). Therapeutic procedures performed included endoscopic transmural drainage of pancreatic fluid collections, celiac plexus block and neurolysis, while diagnostic EUS-like CE-EUS (20%) and real-time elastography (12%) were also conducted. Most complications occurred during the first 7 days after EUS-FNA/FNB or pseudocyst drainage. EUS and the additional tools have high technical success rates and low rates of complications. The EUS methods are safe, cost effective and indispensable for the diagnostic or therapeutic management in gastroenterological everyday practice.

Memories from my practice, my work, and . my story.

This is a personal story about the implementation and building of an independent outpatient fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNA) clinic. The story spans 30-years. The clinic was opened in 1991 and for the first five-years, FNA biopsies were done by palpation. In 1996, I began doing biopsies using ultrasound guidance without the assistance of a radiologist, ultrasound technician or imaging center. In this short story, some of my trials and tribulations as well as successes are highlighted.

Effectiveness of introducing a 20-gauge core biopsy needle with a core trap in EUS-FNA/B for diagnosing pancreatic cancer.

BACKGROUND: Endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration/biopsy (EUS-FNA/B) is a standard method for pathological diagnosis of pancreatic solid lesions. The EchoTip ProCore 20G® (PC20), a 20-gauge biopsy needle with a forward-bevel core trap, has been available in Japan since 2015. METHODS: We compared the efficacy of the PC20 with that of the EchoTip ProCore 22G® (PC22) and Acquire 22G® (AC22) in EUS-FNA/B for diagnosing pancreatic cancer. This retrospective study included 191 patients with pancreatic cancer who underwent EUS-FNA/B using the PC20, PC22, or AC22 at our facility from April 2013 to October 2019. We investigated the patients' clinical characteristics and the diagnostic accuracy and safety of each needle. RESULTS: A sufficient stroke length of puncture was secured in all patients. The maximum length under EUS was shorter with the AC22 (22.1 ± 2.2 mm) than PC20 (30.6 ± 0.7 mm, p < 0.01) and PC22 (30.3 ± 0.8 mm, p < 0.01). The histological accuracy was 96.4% with the PC20 but only 58.8% with the PC22 (adjusted p (p-adj) < 0.0001) and 75.0% with the AC22 (p-adj = 0.06). The diagnostic accuracy of the combination of histology and cytology was 96.4% with the PC20, while it was 72.1% with the PC22 (p-adj < 0.0001) and 91.7% with the AC22 (p-adj > 0.99). One patient (0.9%) in the PC20 group developed mild pancreatitis, but no adverse events occurred with the other needles. CONCLUSIONS: The PC20 showed better diagnostic capability than the PC22. The diagnostic efficacy was similar between the PC20 and AC22. The high histological accuracy of the PC20 could be advantageous for lesions in which histological assessment is critical.

Ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy of thyroid nodules.

Fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) remains crucial in the evaluation of thyroid nodules with suspicious clinical findings or ultrasound (US) features suggestive of malignancy. The use of US-guidance for FNAB allows real-time visualization of the needle, but is also highly operator-dependent. Physicians from many specialties (endocrinologists, otolaryngologists/endocrine surgeons, nuclear medicine physicians, radiologists, and pathologists) are involved in the diagnostic workup of thyroid nodules and a standardized and meticulous technique for US-FNAB is essential for lowering the yield of nondiagnostic specimens and false-negative results. This video, therefore, demonstrates a well-proved technique and technical tips to increase the diagnostic results from US-FNAB.

Superiority of mucosal incision-assisted biopsy over ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy in diagnosing small gastric subepithelial lesions: a propensity score matching analysis.

BACKGROUND: Gastric subepithelial lesions, including gastrointestinal stromal tumors, are often found during routine gastroscopy. While endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (EUS-FNAB) has been the gold standard for diagnosing gastric subepithelial lesions, alternative open biopsy procedures, such as mucosal incision-assisted biopsy (MIAB) has been reported useful. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of MIAB for the diagnosis of gastric SELs compared with EUS-FNAB. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed medical records of 177 consecutive patients with gastric SELs who underwent either MIAB or EUS-FNAB at five hospitals in Japan between January 2010 and January 2018. Diagnostic yield, procedural time, and adverse event rates for the two procedures were evaluated before and after propensity-score matching. RESULTS: No major procedure-related adverse events were observed in either group. Both procedures yielded highly-accurate diagnoses once large enough samples were obtained; however, such successful sampling was more often accomplished by MIAB than by EUS-FNAB, especially for small SELs. As a result, MIAB provided better diagnostic yields for SELs smaller than 20-mm diameter. The diagnostic yields of both procedures were comparable for SELs larger than 20-mm diameter; however, MIAB required significantly longer procedural time (approximately 13 min) compared with EUS-FNAB. CONCLUSIONS: Although MIAB required longer procedural time, it outperformed EUS-FNAB when diagnosing gastric SELs smaller than 20-mm diameter.

Endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy - Recent topics and technical tips.

Endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (EUS-FNA) is a useful procedure that enables reliable pathological diagnoses of pancreatobiliary diseases, subepithelial lesions, and swollen lymph nodes. In recent years, a pathological diagnosis based on EUS-FNA has made it possible to provide accurate treatment methods not only in these fields, but also in respiratory organs and otorhinolaryngology. This review discusses the latest topics pertaining to EUS-FNA as well as procedural tips.

Esophageal Leiomyosarcoma Diagnosed by Endoscopic Ultrasound-guided Fine-needle Aspiration Biopsy and Cured with Surgical Resection.

Esophageal leiomyosarcomas are rare. We herein present the case of an 82-year-old patient who underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, which revealed a submucosal tumor of 30 mm in diameter that was in contact with the esophagus. Endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy was performed and the histopathological findings indicated esophageal leiomyosarcoma. Surgical resection was performed. On histopathological examination, the tumor was found to consist of spindle cells with deep chromatin nuclei. The tumor was finally diagnosed as esophageal leiomyosarcoma. We were able to diagnose early-stage esophageal leiomyosarcoma using endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (EUS-FNA). EUS-FNA is mostly recommended as a diagnostic tool for esophageal submucosal tumors.

Ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy of thyroid nodules <10 mm in the maximum diameter: does size matter?

OBJECTIVE: Ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (US-FNAB) is a safe and effective method of screening malignant thyroid nodules such as papillary thyroid carcinoma. However, not much data are available regarding the diagnostic efficacy of US-FNAB for papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (≤10 mm in diameter). We aim to compare the diagnostic efficacy of US-FNAB on thyroid nodules between two groups divided by a diameter of 10 mm by correlating the cytological results of US-FNAB with the histopathologic diagnoses in selected patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Eight hundred twenty-two thyroid nodules (Group A: diameter ≤10 mm, n=620; Group B: diameter >10 mm, n=202) from 797 patients treated between March 2014 and June 2017 were retrospectively evaluated. Only nodules with Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System (TIRADS) categories 4-6 were enrolled and sampled by US-FNAB, followed by surgical resection. RESULTS: According to The Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Cytopathology (TBSRTC) diagnostic categories, 94 thyroid nodules were classified as I, III and IV, and were excluded from the analysis. The resultant 728 thyroid nodules from 721 patients were analyzed. The malignant tendency (TBSRTC V and VI) rates on US-FNAB were 88.2% and 84.6% (P=0.202) in Group A and Group B, respectively, and the malignant rates were 89.5% and 86.9% (P=0.330), respectively, on histopathology. There was a high concordance between cytology and histopathology diagnoses (kappa value =0.797), and no statistical difference in terms of US-FNAB accuracy was found between the two groups (P=0.533). CONCLUSION: For thyroid nodules of TIRADS category 4-6, the diagnostic efficacy of US-FNAB is similar for thyroid nodules either smaller or greater than 10 mm in their maximum diameter.

Pancreatic granular cell tumor diagnosed by endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy.

Pancreatic granular cell tumors (GCTs) are rare and making an imaging diagnosis of pancreatic GCT is difficult because it has no definite characteristics on contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CE-CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) owing to varying findings. We report about a 32-year-old woman who presented with an incidental finding of a pancreatic tumor with a past history of excision of a right forearm GCT nodule 12 years ago. CE-CT revealed a 23-mm-sized homogeneous low enhancement tumor in the arterial phase in the pancreatic body. Abdominal MRI revealed a lobulated hypointense mass in T1WI and high signal in DWI. Endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) revealed that the tumor was oval, hypoechoic with posterior echo enhancement, and had a well-defined border. Although EUS-guided fine needle aspiration revealed benign granular cells of the pancreas, she underwent laparoscopic surgery because the metastatic tumor from the past lesion was not excluded. The pathological finding was benign GCT of the pancreas and it was considered as an original lesion. In the previous reports, most of the resected cases were considered to be pancreatic cancer or neuroendocrine tumor preoperatively. Compared to CE-CT and MRI, EUS imaging and EUS-FNA are more reliable diagnosis tools for pancreatic GCT. Although malignant GCT accounts for approximately 1-2% of all cases, surgical resection or strict follow-up should be considered because it is difficult to predict its biological behavior.

Thyroid Microcalcifications in the Absence of Identifiable Nodules and Their Association With Thyroid Cancer.

OBJECTIVES: To determine ultrasound (US) and clinical findings of thyroid microcalcifications in the absence of a nodule and their association with the risk of malignancy. METHODS: The Institutional Review Board approved a 5-year retrospective study. Twenty-one patients with clustered or scattered thyroid microcalcifications in the absence of nodules on US images who underwent fine-needle aspiration biopsies (FNABs) were included. Demographic and clinical data, US findings, and pathologic results were registered. Patients with a suspicion of malignancy or papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) on FNAB underwent thyroidectomy. Patients with benign results on FNAB underwent clinical and US surveillance. RESULTS: The mean age of the 21 patients was 33.2 years (29.5 years in patients with PTC patients and 39.4 years in those with benign findings; P = .034). Eleven of 21 patients had clustered microcalcifications (9 had cancer), and 10 of 21 patients had scattered microcalcifications (4 of 10 had cancer; P = 0.063). Sixty-two percent of the patients had FNAB findings that were suspicious for cancer or had a diagnosis of cancer. Eleven of 13 patients had surgical thyroidectomy performed in our institution; in all cases, Hashimoto thyroiditis was confirmed. Univariate and multivariate analysis showed that only age was significant (odds ratio, 0.9; P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that the presence of thyroid microcalcifications without a nodule is suspicious for PTC. We found that both patterns were suspicious for PTC, particularly in young patients. Special concern arises for those clustered microcalcifications on a background of Hashimoto thyroiditis.

Pancreatic metastasis of papillary thyroid carcinoma preoperatively diagnosed by endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy: a case report with review of literatures.

Pancreatic metastatic tumors from thyroid carcinoma are extremely rare. We report a case of an 80-year-old female with a pancreatic metastatic tumor derived from papillary thyroid carcinoma which was initially resected 158 months prior to detection of the metastatic pancreatic tumor. The patient has encountered cervical lymph-node metastasis on three occasions following the initial operation. Metastatic pancreatic lesions and cervical lymph nodes were first detected using 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron-emission tomography/computed tomography, and she was preoperatively diagnosed using endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy. A coin lesion, 10 mm in size, was detected in the left lung by chest computed tomography with no abnormal uptake in 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron-emission tomography/computed tomography. Distal pancreatectomy and cervical lymph-node dissection were performed. Adjuvant chemotherapy with weekly paclitaxel was administered because anaplastic transformation had been detected in one of the cervical lymph nodes. The patient eventually died from multiple lung metastases 11 months after removing the metastatic pancreatic lesion. We reported a rare case of a pancreatic metastatic tumor from thyroid carcinoma, and found that 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron-emission tomography/computed tomography and endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy are useful for preoperatively diagnosing tumors.

Pre-operative and intra-operative detection of axillary lymph node metastases in 108 patients with invasive lobular breast cancer undergoing mastectomy.

BACKGROUND: Despite the recent changes in the treatment of the axilla in selected breast cancer patient, positive sentinel lymph node (SLN) in patients undergoing mastectomy still necessitates axillary lymph node dissection (ALND). In invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC), pre-operative detection of the lymph node metastasis may be demanding due to its unique morphology. The aim of this study was to examine the benefit of preoperative axillary ultrasound (AUS), ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (US-FNAB), and intra-operative imprint cytology (IIC), in order to avoid two-stage axillary surgery in patients with ILC undergoing mastectomy. METHODS: The object of this study were 102 patients (median age 52, range 34-73 years) with clinically non-suspicious axilla in whom 108 mastectomies were performed after a pre-operative AUS investigation. Whenever a metastasis was detected in a sentinel lymph node, ALND was done. Reports of the pre-operative AUS investigation, US-FNAB, and IIC were compared with definitive histopathological reports of surgical specimens. RESULTS: In 46 cases lymph node metastases were diagnosed. AUS suspicious lymph nodes were found in 29/108 cases and histopathology confirmed metastases in 22/30 cases. US-FNAB was performed in 29 cases with AUS suspicious lymph nodes. Cytology proved metastases in 11/29 cases. Histopathology confirmed metastases in 10/11 cases with only isolated tumor cells found in one case. IIC investigation was performed in 63 cases and in 10/27 cases metastases were confirmed by histopathology. Pre-operative AUS, US-FNAB, and/or IIC investigation enabled ALND during a single surgical procedure in 20/46 patients with metastases in lymph nodes. CONCLUSION: Pre-operative AUS, US-FNAB, and/or IIC are/is beneficial in patients with ILC planned for mastectomy in order to decrease the number of two stage axillary procedures.