Summary

In this study, our aim was to find out the role, benefits and limitations of fine needle aspiration cytology in the preoperative interpretation of soft tissue and bone lesions in our institution. Soft tissue and bone fine needle aspiration cytology cases that have been interpreted at the Pathology Department of Kocaeli University Medical Faculty for the last five years were reviewed retrospectively. The cases were grouped into six categories according to their diagnoses as 1-”benign-inflammatory”, 2-”benign-tumoral”, 3-”suspicious”, 4-“malignant-primary”, 5-”malignant- recurrent”, 6-”malignant-metastatic”. The cases that have histopathological examination done were correlated with their fine needle aspiration cytology. “Suspicious” cases were regarded as “positive” in the statistical analysis. Twenty-seven fine needle aspiration cytology cases out of the total 116 were unsatisfactory. Those that a cytopathological diagnosis was given were 89 cases. Twenty-four were reported in the “benign-inflammatory lesion” group while 30 were in the “benign-tumoral lesion” group. Fourteen cases were put in to the “suspicious lesion” category. A total of 21 cases were reported in the “malignant lesion” group of which 9 were primary, 2 were recurrent and 10 were metastatic. Fifty-six of the cases had histopathological verification and 7 of these had unsatisfactory fine needle aspiration cytology. Cyto-histopathological correlation resulted in 100% concordance in the “benign-inflammatory”, “benign-tumoral” and “malignant” categories. Histopathological examination resulted in benign diagnosis in 42.86% (6/14); in borderline diagnosis in 7.14% (1/14) and in malignant diagnosis in 50% (7/14) of the “suspicious” lesions. In the differantiation of benign from malignant lesions of soft tissue and bone in the fine needle aspiration cytology at our department, the sensitivity rate is 100%, specificity is 76.92%, positive predictive value is 79.31%, negative predictive value is 100% and the accuracy is 87.75%. In the diagnosis of primary benign and malignant lesions, in the detection of the local recurrences and for the confirmation of the metastatic tumors of soft tissue and bone, fine needle aspiration cytology is useful before the invasive methods. Fine needle spiration cytology results will be more successfull if it is regarded as a team work, the interpretations are made together with the clinical and radiological data, fine needle aspiration is repeated when necessary and the cases are followed with close clinicopathological interaction.