Fine-needle aspiration biopsy in a pediatric population. Report of 64 consecutive cases

Fine-needle aspiration biopsy for diagnosis of mass lesions has seldom been used in pediatric patients. Sixty-four aspirations from pediatric patients have been reviewed in order to determine the adequacy of this technique in the pediatric age group. There were 38 benign diagnoses, 19 malignant diagnoses, and 7 unsatisfactory specimens. The benign diagnoses included inflammatory lesions, benign tumors, cystic lesions, and miscellaneous lesions. The malignant diagnoses included neuroblastomas, leukemias or lymphomas, small cell or poorly differentiated tumors, Wilms' tumors, rhabdomyosarcomas, a Ewing's sarcoma, and a postirradiation fibrosarcoma. Correlation of histologic and cytologic diagnoses was possible in 53 cases. The diagnostic sensitivity and specificity for the detection of malignant disease were 76% and 100%, respectively. These results suggest that fine-needle aspiration biopsy is a useful technique in the diagnosis of pediatric mass lesions.