Radiology, Vol 185, 709-711, Copyright © 1992 by Radiological Society of North America
Effects of fine-needle aspiration on the US appearance of the breast
WE Svensson, E Tohno, DO Cosgrove, TJ Powles, B al Murrani and AL Jones
Department of Nuclear Medicine, Royal Marsden Hospital, London, England.
Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) of normal breast tissue or benign lesions can
cause changes that suggest malignancy at ultrasound (US) examination.
Serial US studies showed that three of 17 patients developed signs
mimicking malignancy following FNA of palpable breast lumps. A second group
of 14 patients had US signs of malignancy in palpable lumps following
recent FNA. Nine patients with benign lesions were unnecessarily worried,
since the appearance was probably due to FNA. Diagnosis of malignancy was
delayed in one of five patients because the US appearance was attributed to
the FNA in the presence of false-negative cytologic findings. FNA of normal
breast tissue or benign masses produced tissue changes in 18% of cases that
altered the US appearance from normal or benign to possibly malignant. The
changes took up to 4 months to subside. If US is clinically indicated, it
should be performed before FNA.
