Specimen Types Breast cytology includes the nipple discharge and fine-needle aspiration (FNA). The more common specimen by far is the FNA. Fine-Needle Aspiration FNA is used to evaluate palpable breast masses and cysts, as well as nonpalpable mammographic abnormalities. FNA…
Acknowledgments Thank you to Olga Pozdnyakova, MD, for her contributions to the video. Thank you to Jessica L. Wang, MD, and Bonnie Choy, MD, for assistance with preparing visual material for this chapter. Introduction Fine needle aspiration (FNA) is widely…
The advent of improved sampling and visualization devices cemented cytology as a valuable method for the detection of gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies, premalignant lesions, and infections. Direct endoscopic visualization of the mucosa, coupled with ultrasound imaging of submucosal structures, allows for…
The lumbar puncture (spinal tap) was introduced in 1891, , and in 1904 a French neurologist first described malignant cells in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Since then, preparatory methods have been refined and diagnostic features described in a number of monographs…
Peritoneal washing cytology (PWC) was introduced in the 1950s as a way to identify microscopic spread of cancer not visible by gross inspection of the peritoneal surface. In some cancer patients, positive PWC may be the only evidence of metastatic…
The pleural, pericardial, and peritoneal cavities are lined by a single layer of flat mesothelial cells called the serosa . Normally, these cavities are collapsed and contain only a small amount of fluid (50 mL in each pleural cavity in…
Urine cytology was popularized by George Papanicolaou in the 1940s as a way to detect and monitor patients with bladder cancer. By the 1960s, the cytologic, histologic, and clinical features of high-grade urothelial carcinoma were well established, and cytology became…
Exfoliative cytology was first used to study cells of the respiratory tract in 1845. The ability to diagnose pulmonary diseases cytologically was appreciated as early as 1919, but it was not until the 1950s and 1960s that pulmonary cytology came…
The 20th century witnessed a remarkable decline in the mortality from cervical cancer in developed countries, an achievement attributable to the implementation of the Papanicolaou (Pap) test. In the 1930s, before Pap test screening was introduced, cervical cancer was the…