6533b856fe1ef96bd12b31c9

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration cytology in the early detection of melanoma metastases.

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BACKGROUND. The early detection and treatment of tumor recurrences in melanoma patients is dependent on reliable, sensitive, and specific techniques to verify suspected tumor metastases. As of now, fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) has yet to establish itself in the routine follow-up of melanoma patients. METHODS. FNAC procedures were performed in melanoma patients with palpable tumors or nonpalpable, ultrasonically suspicious lesions. Cytodiagnostic evaluation of fine-needle samples obtained from suspicious lesions was performed morphologically. Findings were validated either by histopathologic diagnosis or prolonged clinical follow-up. RESULTS. The cytologic examination of 739 FNACs from 330 melanoma patients was conducted within 1 day of sampling. Complications were not observed. This study showed a sensitivity of 97.9% and a specificity of 100.0%. Moreover, in 158 FNACs derived from lesions with a diameter less than 1 cm a sensitivity of 94.6% was achieved. Diagnosis of metastatic melanoma with unknown primary tumor was established in 20 cases. CONCLUSIONS. FNAC is very reliable for the early detection of melanoma metastases. FNAC is a swift method free of complications and is able to replace diagnostic surgery completely for nonmalignant lesions in a large number of patients. Moreover, FNAC is especially useful in combination with ultrasound in melanoma follow-up and can enable diagnosis of lesions smaller than 1 cm without impairment of sensitivity or specificity.