Diagnostic Efficacy of Cell Block and Liquid-Based Cytology for Endoscopic Ultrasound-Guided Fine Needle Aspiration in Pancreatic Tumors.

This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of cell block (CB) and liquid-based cytology (LBC) for endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) in pancreatic tumors. The study included patients who underwent EUS-FNA for pancreatic tumors between January 2015 and February 2021 and whose cytology samples were both processed for LBC and CB. Data of 390 patients (220 men, mean age: 64.2 ± 11.4 years) were retrospectively analyzed. Of the detected lesions (size: 17-120 mm; mean: 39.9 ± 13.9 mm), 220 (56.4%) were located in the head and uncinate process of the pancreas. Lesions in 339 (86.9%) patients were diagnosed as malignant using CB and/or LBC and suspicious for malignancy in 44 (11.3%) patients. In 7 patients with non-diagnostic (6 cases) or negative for malignancy (1 case) EUS-FNA results using both methods, the diagnosis of malignancy was established via ultrasound-guided percutaneous biopsy. Malignancy was detected in 324 (92.4%), 313 (87.9%), and 298 (87.9%) patients using CB, LBC, and both CB and LBC, respectively. Final diagnosis was obtained in 339 (98%) patients by using CB and/or LBC. The combined use of the both methods exhibited significantly superior diagnostic accuracy compared with CB and LBC alone (P < .001). Liquid-based cytology and CB exhibit high diagnostic accuracy for the detection of pancreatic tumors in patients undergoing EUS-FNA. The combined use of both methods showed a significantly higher diagnostic accuracy than LBC and CB alone.

Phenolic compounds and vitamins in wild and cultivated apricot (Prunus armeniaca L) fruits grown in irrigated and dry farming conditions

BACKGROUND: Turkey is the main apricot producer in the world and apricots have been produced under both dry and irrigated conditions in the country. In this study, phenolic compounds and vitamins in fruits of one wild (Zerdali) and three main apricot cultivars ('Cataloglu', 'Hacihaliloglu' and 'Kabaasi') grown in both dry and irrigated conditions in Malatya provinces in Turkey were investigated. RESULTS: The findings indicated that higher content of phenolic compounds and vitamins was found in apricot fruits grown in irrigated conditions. Among the cultivars, 'Cataloglu' had the highest rutin contents both in irrigated and dry farming conditions as 2855 µg in irrigated and 6952 µg per 100 g dried weight base in dry conditions and the highest chlorogenic acid content in irrigated and dry farming conditions were measured in fruits of 'Hacihaliloglu' cultivar as 7542 µg and 15251 µg per 100 g dried weight base. Vitamin C contents in homogenates of fruit flesh and skin was found to be higher than ß-caroten, retinol, vitamin E and lycopen contents in apricot fruits both in irrigated and dry farming conditions. CONCLUSION: The results suggested that apricot fruits grown in both dry and irrigated conditions had high health benefits phytochemicals and phytochemical content varied among cultivars and irrigation conditions as well. However, more detailed biological and pharmacological studies are needed for the demonstration and clarification of health benefits of apricot fruits.