Fine needle aspiration in lymphoma for diagnosis - JCO - Hehn et al. 22 (15): 3046

This article by Hehn ST et al in the August issue Journal of Clinical Oncology is about the validity of fine-needle aspiration (FNA) in patients suspected to have lymphoma, either primary or recurrent.

Their results: "Of the 93 FNA attempts at initial diagnosis, only 27 (29%) were given a specific and complete histologic diagnosis using an accepted classification system (Working Formulation, Revised European-American Classification of Lymphoid Neoplasms, WHO). For the 22 FNAs done for recurrent disease, only nine (41%) were classified using an accepted system."

This reinforces the accepted dictum that in patients suspected to have lymphoma, FNAs should not be done. The best bet is to perform tru-cut core biopsies.