FINE NEEDLE ASPIRATION VERSUS TRU-CUT BIOPSY IN BREAST AND GYNECOLOGIC CANCERS

Diagnostic values of fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) and thin needle tru-cut (TC) biopsy were compared in a pilot study of 37 patients. Both biopsies were done by the same physician, to the same lesion. Mases, subcutaneous nodules, or enlarged lymph nodes were biopsied. The primary tumor was breast cancer in 30 patients and a gynecologic cancer in the remaining seven, in the whole series, sensitivity, specificity, false negative rate, false positive rate, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy for FNAB and TC, respectively, are 76% and 75%, 100% and 100%, 24% and 25%, 0 and 0, 100% and 100%, 53% and 56%, 81% and 81%. When the two types of biopsies were considered together for the diagnosis the following values were achieved: sensitivity 89%, specificity 100%, accuracy 92%. No serious complication was detected in the study. TC biopsy method was considered as valuable, safe, and easy as FNAB, it also has the advantage of obtaining tissue for quantitative and qualitative laboratory tests.