Computed tomography guided fine needle aspiration cytology of mass lesions of lung: Our experience

Context: Computerized tomography (CT) guided fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) of lung lesions has rapidly emerged as a less-invasive, cheap, rapid and fairly accurate diagnostic aid in lung lesions. Aims: The purpose of this present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of CT-guided FNAC in...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mimi Gangopadhyay, Indranil Chakrabarti, Nilanjana Ghosh, Amita Giri
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Thieme Medical and Scientific Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 2011-01-01
Series:Indian Journal of Medical and Paediatric Oncology
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Online Access:http://www.ijmpo.org/article.asp?issn=0971-5851;year=2011;volume=32;issue=4;spage=192;epage=196;aulast=Gangopadhyay
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Summary:Context: Computerized tomography (CT) guided fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) of lung lesions has rapidly emerged as a less-invasive, cheap, rapid and fairly accurate diagnostic aid in lung lesions. Aims: The purpose of this present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of CT-guided FNAC in the diagnosis of pulmonary mass lesions (both benign and malignant) and to determine the complication rate of this procedure. Settings and Design: We conducted an institution-based, prospective study on 127 patients who presented with pulmonary mass lesions. Materials and Methods: After proper consent was obtained, CT-guided transthoracic fine needle aspiration was done and their diagnoses were confirmed by appropriate methods. The results were analyzed statistically. Results: Out of 127 cases selected for the study, 59.8% were males while the rest were females. Cough was the most common symptom present in 71.2% cases, followed by weight loss (62.4%). 21.2% cases were cytologically benign. Adenocarcinoma (54.2%) was the commonest malignant tumor. FNAC provided at least 96% sensitivity and 100% specificity in diagnosing lung tumors. Among the benign lesions, specific diagnoses were obtained in 48.1% cases. Thus, altogether a specific diagnosis was obtained in 109 of 127 cases, i.e. 85.8%. No major complication was noted. Conclusions: CT-guided FNAC is an extremely valuable and fairly accurate diagnostic aid of intrathoracic mass lesions, with a reasonable rate of complication.
ISSN:0971-5851