Not by blood alone: diagnosis of hemangiomas by fine-needle aspiration

Hemangiomas are common vascular neoplasms which are being radiographically detected and biopsied with increasing frequency during the workup of patients with malignant disease. The increasing confidence of radiologists in biopsying these lesions is in contrast to the reluctance of pathologists to make a specific diagnosis of hemangioma. Eleven cases of hemangioma, from both hepatic and superficial sites, were reviewed and the fine-needle aspirate findings discussed and illustrated. Three-dimensional arcades composed of bland elongated spindle cells or compact dense coils of spindle cells associated with scattered spindle-shaped cells were identified in 10 of 11 cases. In conclusion, recognition of the cellular pattern of hemangiomas combined with the radiologic information can enable a positive diagnosis of hemangioma to be made.