Comparison of the diagnostic accuracy of fine needle aspiration cytology and core needle biopsy in patients with ultrasound detected breast lesions as well as the cost effectiveness of the screening modalities in the poor population visiting our institution

Background: Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer relayed mortality and morbidity among women and the incidence of the disease is rising all over the world. Despite the imaging techniques, histopathological diagnosis still plays an essential role for differential diagnosis and for avoiding surgical over-treatment in case of breast lesions with suspicious features (10). Fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC), core needle biopsy (CNB) and vacuum assisted breast biopsy(VABB) represent the current methods of choice for pathological diagnosis, both with their specific advantages and limitations. The purpose of this study is to compare the diagnostic accuracy of FNAC and CNB in patients with US-detected breast lesions as well as the cost effectiveness of the screening modalities in the poor population visiting our institution.Methods: It was a retrospective study done using the department register data where we compared the FNAC findings and compared it with CNB findings in the same cases. This was a short study done for a period of 3 months only from January 2017-March 2017. We collected 50 cases of breast carcinomas where both FNAC and CNB findings as well as the clinical information and follow up were available for the patients. We compiled the data for these cases and slides were reviewed by two independent pathologists to remove observer bias. Authors tabulated clinical information, FNAC diagnosis, CNB diagnosis as well as the stage at presentation and follow up for each case.Results: As is seen in this study that 7 cases which were benign on FNAC were benign on CNB also. As for malignancy while CNB diagnosed 43 cases as malignant FNAC diagnosed 5 cases as suspicious [which were malignant on CNB] and 37 cases as malignant which came out to be malignant in CNB too. So, the while the NPV is 100% the PPV is comparable to CNB.Conclusions: In conclusion, FNAC and CNB represent accurate methods for the characterization of US-detected breast nodules, with similar values of diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and NPV. In experienced hands, FNAC could be still considered the first method to evaluate breast lesions being less invasive. CNB has a higher PPV and should be performed for uncertain diagnostic cases and when the evaluation of the invasiveness or histological type of breast lesion is mandatory.