Combined cytological and histological diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma in ultrasonically guided fine needle biopsy specimens

This study evaluates the usefulness of a combined cytological and histological approach to the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) when applied to fine needle biopsy specimens obtained under ultrasonic guidance. The material, aspirated from 51 focal liver lesions, was handled in such a way that there was sufficient material for both cytological and histological (cell block) assessment. Of the 29 cases of HCC studied, a confident cytological diagnosis was made in 23 (79%). In the remaining six cases, the cytological features were considered to be suspicious but not diagnostic of HCC. Examination of cell blocks in the six cases enabled a confident diagnosis of HCC to be made in all cases. This was due to the supplementary visual information provided by the histological features, particularly the pattern of arrangement of the tumour cells.