Cytologic Assessment of Cystic/Intraductal Lesions of the Pancreatobiliary Tract.

CONTEXT.­: Because of new and improved imaging techniques, cystic/intraductal pancreatobiliary tract lesions are increasingly being discovered, and brushings or endoscopic ultrasound/computed tomography/magnetic resonance imaging-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsies from these lesions have become an integral part of pathologists' daily practice. Because patient management has become increasingly conservative, accurate preoperative diagnosis is critical. Cytologic distinction of low-risk (pseudocysts, serous cystadenoma, lymphoepithelial cysts, and squamoid cysts of the pancreatic duct) from high-risk pancreatic cysts (intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm and mucinous cystic neoplasm) requires incorporation of clinical, radiologic, and cytologic findings, in conjunction with chemical and molecular analysis of cyst fluid. Cytopathologists must ensure appropriate specimen triage, along with cytologic interpretation, cyst classification, and even grading of some (mucinous) cysts. Epithelial atypia in mucinous cysts (intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm and mucinous cystic neoplasm) has transitioned from a 3-tiered to a 2-tiered classification system, and intraductal oncocytic papillary neoplasms and intraductal tubulopapillary neoplasms have been separately reclassified because of their distinctive clinicopathologic characteristics. Because these lesions may be sampled on brushing or fine-needle aspiration biopsy, knowledge of their cytomorphology is critical. OBJECTIVE.­: To use an integrated, multidisciplinary approach for the evaluation of cystic/intraductal pancreatobiliary tract lesions (incorporating clinical, radiologic, and cytologic findings with [chemical/molecular] cyst fluid analysis and ancillary stains) for definitive diagnosis and classification. DATA SOURCES.­: Review of current literature on the cytopathology of cystic/intraductal pancreatobiliary tract lesions. CONCLUSIONS.­: Our knowledge/understanding of recent updates in cystic/intraductal pancreatobiliary lesions can ensure that cytopathologists appropriately triage specimens, judiciously use and interpret ancillary studies, and incorporate the studies into reporting.

Risk for malignant and borderline ovarian neoplasms following basic preoperative evaluation by ultrasonography, ca125 level and age.

OBJECTIVE: To verify the basic preoperative evaluation in the discrimination between benign and malignant adnexal masses in our clinical practice. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were collected on the records of 636 women with adnexal masses who had undergone surgery either by open or endoscopic approaches. Those with obvious signs of malignancy, any history of cancer, emergency surgeries without basic evaluation were excluded. The preoperative features by age, ultrasound and serum Ca125 level were compared with final histopathological diagnosis at the four departments of the institution. These are the general gynecology (Group 1: exploratory laparotomy), the gynecologic endoscopy (Group 2: laparoscopy and adnexectomy), the gynecological oncology (Group 3: staging laparotomy) and the gynecologic endocrinology and infertility (Group 4: laparoscopy and cystectomy). RESULTS: There were simple and complex cyst rates of 22.3% and 77.2%, respectively. There were 86.3% benign, 4.1% (n:20) borderline ovarian tumor (BOT) and 6.4% (n:48) malignant lesions. There were 3 BOT and 9 ovarian cancers in Group 1 and one BOT and two ovarian cancer in the Group 2. During the surgery, 15 BOT (75%) and 37 ovarian cancer (77%) were detected in the Group 3, only one BOT was encountered in the Group 4. The risk of rate of unsuspected borderline or focally invasive ovarian cancer significantly increased by age, size, complex morphology and Ca125 (95% CI, OR=2.72, OR=6.60, OR=6.66 and OR=4.69, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Basic preoperative evaluation by comprehensive ultrasound imaging combined with age and Ca125 level has proved highly accurate for prediction of unexpected malignancies. Neither novel markers nor new imaging techniques provide better information that allow clinicians to assess the feasibility of the planned surgery; consequently, the risk of inadvertent cyst rupture during laparoscopy may be significantly decreased in selected cases.

Comparison of risk of malignancy index (RMI), CA125, CA 19-9, ultrasound score, and menopausal status in borderline ovarian tumor.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the prognostic values of risk of malignancy index (RMI IV), ultrasound score, menopausal status, and serum CA125 and CA19-9 level in patients with borderline ovarian tumor (BOT). METHODS: Fifty women having borderline ovarian tumor (BOT) and 5O individuals with benign adnexal mass were enrolled in this retrospective study. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive values, negative predictive values and diagnostic accuracy of preoperative serum levels of the CA125 and CA19-9, ultrasound findings and menopausal status, and RMI IV were calculated for prediction of discrimination between BOTs and benign adnexal masses and the results were compared. RESULTS: The RMI IV was the best method for discrimination between BOTs and benign adnexal masses and was more accurate than the other parameters. When Receiver Operator Characteristic area under the curves for menopausal status was analyzed, serum CA 125 and CA19-9 level, ultrasound score, RMI IV(CA125), and RMI IV(CA19-9) were, 0.580, 0.625, 0.548, 0.694, 0.734 and 0.711, respectively. The best RMI IV cut-off was found to be 200 for discrimination of benign and BOT lesions. In the RMI formulation, replacing CA125 with CA19-9 didn't affect RMI IV sensitivity and specificity for discrimination. CONCLUSION: Compared to ultrasound, menopausal status, CA-125, CA19-9, the RMI IV was found to be the best predictive method for differentiation of BOTs from benign adnexal masses. RMI IV cut-off value of 200 is suitable for differentiation of benign and BOT's.

Intraoperative assessment of clear cell carcinoma of the ovary.

Frozen section is a reliable technique in gynecologic pathology and is widely used to guide intraoperative management in patients presenting with ovarian masses. However, there are limited data regarding the diagnostic accuracy of frozen section in specific subtypes of ovarian neoplasia. Our impression that primary clear cell carcinoma (CCC) causes disproportionate diagnostic difficulty led us to review the intraoperative and final histopathologic reports from a consecutive series of 44 CCC that were subject to frozen-section assessment and to compare the results with a similar number of primary serous and endometrioid carcinomas. The original intraoperative slides from those CCC with discordant diagnoses were also reviewed. Review of the diagnostic reports showed that CCC was less frequently specifically identified than serous or endometrioid carcinomas on frozen section (44% cases compared with 55% and 65%, respectively), although the differences were not statistically significant. Difficulties in distinguishing primary ovarian carcinoma from tumors metastatic to the ovary occurred in a minority of cases of all histologic subtypes, but was slightly more frequent in CCC. Two CCC were misdiagnosed as borderline epithelial tumors and 1 case as a dysgerminoma. Review of the frozen-section slides from the CCC with discrepant intraoperative diagnoses showed features suggestive or indicative of the correct diagnosis in 7 (39%) of 18 cases.

Intraoperative assessment of ovarian tumors: a 5-year review with assessment of discrepant diagnostic cases.

Frozen section is often requested in the intraoperative assessment of patients, presenting with ovarian masses, to provide guidance for appropriate surgical management. To assess the accuracy of frozen section and identify causes of diagnostic error, we reviewed 914 consecutive ovarian frozen sections performed over a 5-year period in 2 laboratories; one of which provides a general surgical pathology service and, the other, a specialist gynecologic pathology service. Cases, in which there were significant diagnostic discrepancies between the intraoperative and the final histological diagnoses, were reviewed. The series included 552 benign lesions (60.4%), 96 borderline (atypical proliferating) epithelial tumors (10.5%), and 266 malignancies (29.1%). The overall accuracy of frozen section diagnosis was 95.3%. There were 43 cases with diagnostic discrepancy; 20 (3.8% cases) of which were reported in the specialist laboratory and 23 (5.9% cases) in the general laboratory. Underdiagnosis of tumor type accounted for 32 of 43 discrepant cases and was most frequent in borderline mucinous tumors. The most common cause of overdiagnosis was the misinterpretation of serous cystadenofibroma as borderline serous tumor. Slide review of the 41 assessable cases indicated that sampling error, pathologist misinterpretation, and suboptimal slide preparations contributed to misdiagnoses in 17, 23, and 9 tumors, respectively (in 9 cases, 2 factors were contributory), whereas no specific error was identified in the remaining case. Technical factors and pathologist misinterpretation were more common in the general pathology laboratory. This study confirms that ovarian frozen section is a generally reliable technique, but there are problematic areas, particularly involving the assessment of borderline tumors.

Preoperative assessment of unilocular adnexal cysts by transvaginal ultrasonography: a comparison between ultrasonographic morphologic imaging and histopathologic diagnosis.

OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to evaluate the risk of malignancy in surgically removed ovarian cysts that were characterized before the operation as unilocular according to transvaginal ultrasonography. STUDY DESIGN: This prospective analysis included 927 premenopausal women and 377 postmenopausal women operated on at 2 European university hospitals between January 1992 and December 1997. On the basis of ultrasonographic findings the cysts were characterized either as echo-free, without solid parts or papillary formations (group 1), or as having echogenic cyst content, with solid parts or papillary formations (group 2). Ultrasonographic and macroscopic appearances of the cysts were compared with histopathologic diagnosis. RESULTS: In group 1, in premenopausal women 3 of 413 cysts (0.73%) proved to be borderline or malignant, and in postmenopausal women 4 of 247 cysts (1.6%) proved to be borderline or malignant. The figures for cysts in group 2 were 11 of 514 cysts (2.1%) and 13 of 130 cysts (10.0%), respectively. It was not possible to differentiate by transvaginal ultrasonography between benign, borderline, and malignant cysts when solid parts or papillary formations were visualized. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed that the risk of malignancy associated with unilocular echo-free cysts (group 1) was low. Serial ultrasonographic follow-up should therefore be the standard procedure with unilocular echo-free cysts <50 mm in diameter. In cysts with a mean diameter of >50 mm, papillary formations or solid parts may be missed by transvaginal ultrasonography. The risk for malignancy in cysts containing papillary formations or solid parts (group 2) was 3 to 6 times higher than that in unilocular echo-free cysts.