[Preoperative diagnosis of breast tumors in our clinic]

Between 1983 and 1988 197 patients underwent mammography and fine needle aspiration cytology procedure beside physical examination before operation for breast tumor in our clinic. The sensitivity of mammography and fine needle aspiration cytology were 81.9 and 66.1%, their specificities were 91.2 and 95%, the specificity of physical examination was 97.7%. When all three examinations indicated malignancy, this was confirmed by histology without exception. When the examinations showed benign lesion in concert, four of the 26 diagnoses were false, histology proved breast cancer smaller than 2 centimetres in diameter without lymph node metastases in each case. Those aspirations which were considered unsatisfactory because of the lack of cells supported the diagnosis of a benign tumor raised by physical examination and mammography. Our data indicate that the diagnosis yielded by the combination of the three examinations may support therapy more than it does in the present.