Evaluation of diagnostic role of fine needle aspiration cytology in children with tumors at a tertiary centre of Bihar

Childhood tumour is a challenging medical situation for the child patient, the parents, and the physician. Fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is a relatively new technique for the diagnosis of pediatric tumors. Most of the studies conducted so far have dealt only with malignant neoplasms or neoplasms of a particular organ/organ system in the pediatric population. Our work included a comprehensive study of both benign and malignant tumors in children to correlate their clinical, cytological, and histological findings and to evaluate the effectiveness of FNAC in their diagnosis.

A prospective study of FNAC in children ≤ 15 years of age presenting with mass lesions was studied for period of 1year. Distribution of cases in different age groups, sex, and site of lesion was analyzed. Childhood tumor were categorized into non-neoplastic, benign, and malignant conditions. Diagnostic efficacy was assessed by comparing subsequent histopathological examination wherever possible. Statistical analysis done by SPSS 22

Out of 75 cases, maximum number of pediatric patients i.e., 42 cases 56% were between 11 to 15 years. Male to female ratio was 1.14: 1. The most common site for FNAC was cervical lymph node swelling 50.6% (38/75) followed by thyroid swelling. Reactive lymphadenitis was the commonest diagnosis among all mass lesions 40% (26/60), whereas Fibroadenoma 26.6% (4/12) was commonest diagnosis among benign lesions and among malignant lesions. There were three cases each of Hodgkins and non-Hodgkins lymphoma and one chondrosarcoma. The positive predictive value for diagnosing malignant lesions by FNAC was 100%.

We conclude that FNAC is an effective method for the evaluation and screening of childhood tumor and can be use full investigation in follow-up of patients with a history of malignancy.