PERCUTANEOUS ULTRASOUND-GUIDED NEEDLE-BIOPSY OF HEPATIC MASS LESIONS USING A CYTOHISTOLOGIC APPROACH - COMPARISON OF 2 NEEDLE TYPES

This study compared the ability to diagnose and accurately classify hepatic mass lesions by ultrasound-guided biopsy using two different needle types: a 20 gauge needle that yielded primarily cytologic material and an 18 gauge automated core biopsy needle. Slides prepared from each of the needle types were separately evaluated in a blinded fashion, The 20 gauge needle had a sensitivity of 90%, a specificity of 90%, and enabled exact tumor classification in 70% of cases. The 18 gauge core biopsy had a sensitivity of 85%, a specificity of 100%, and allowed exact tumor typing in 82% of cases, The sensitivity and specificity of both needle types combined was 98% and 100%, respectively, and all malignancies were correctly typed. A combined cytohistologic approach provides a highly accurate means of diagnosing and typing hepatic tumors and provides a suitable sample for confirmatory stains, Accurate tumor typing may affect therapeutic decisions.