Michael B. Cohen

Low Grade Transitional Cell Carcinoma of the Bladder Cytologic Diagnosis by Key Features as Identified by Logistic Regression Analysis

Background. Bladder cytology is being used increasingly to detect and monitor early stage bladder cancer. Because of the lack of significant cytomorphologic atypia in low grade transitional cell carcinomas (TCCs), there often is great difficulty in separating these neoplastic cells from benign urothelial cells.

Guidelines of the Papanicolaou Society of Cytopathology for the Examination of Cytologic Specimens Obtained from the Respiratory Tract

Cytologic examination of specimens obtained from the respiratory tract is a primary and frequently the initial diagnostic technique performed in patients with respiratory symptoms or in those presenting with a pulmonary abnormality. While occasional cytologic specimens are obtained from the upper respiratory tract, the majority of pulmonary diagnostic cytology involves the study of the lower respiratory tract. The guidelines contained within this document will address evaluation of specimens relating to the lower respiratory system (trachea, bronchi, bronchioles, and alveoli). Due to the complexity of the respiratory tract and the location of various target lesions, a variety of cytologic techniques have been developed for the study of diseases involving the respiratory system. Both exfoliative cytology techniques and fine-needle aspiration (FNA) are used extensively for diagnosis of pulmonary lesions. While respiratory cytology is used predominantly for the study of neoplastic or potentially neoplastic disease, it is also variably useful in the investigation of a variety of benign diseases including opportunistic infections, tuberculosis, sarcoidosis, industrial disease (e.g., asbestosis), and lung transplant rejection.1–24

Alpha-fetoprotein half-life as a predictor of residual testicular tumor. Effect of the analytic strategy on test sensitivity and specificity

Background. Alpha‐fetoprotein (AFP) serum values after orchiectomy for testicular cancer can be used to predict the residual disease status. However, the optimal strategy for postorchiectomy marker analysis has not been studied. This article evaluated different analytic methods in an effort to identify the approach that provided the greatest sensitivity and specificity for occult residual disease.

Cytologic criteria for the brush diagnosis of gastric adenocarcinoma

The cytologic diagnosis of gastric adenocarcinoma often is difficult, and the role of gastric brushing in the detection of gastric malignancy is controversial. The purpose of this study was to identify the key cytologic criteria that are most useful for establishing a diagnosis of adenocarcinoma in gastric brushing specimens.

Breast Fine‐Needle Aspiration in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: First‐Year Experience in the Ho Chi Minh City Cancer Center

Abstract: In the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women. Prior to 1994, in certain regions of Vietnam, such as the South, the only diagnostic modalities for breast lesions were clinical examination and open surgical biopsy, a procedure prohibitively expensive for many women. In January 1994, two American cytopathologists conducted a 3‐day breast fine needle aspiration (FNA) seminar at the Ho Chi Minh City Cancer Center, Ho Chi Minh City. After the seminar, 754 breast FNAs were performed from January 1994 to January 1995. The sensitivity and specificity of breast FNA were 96% and 83%, respectively, and there were nine false positive and seven false negative diagnoses. The overall diagnostic accuracy of breast FNA is within the range of previously reported accuracies, indicating that breast FNA can be learned quickly and practiced proficiently. A main role of breast FNA in Vietnam is in the diagnosis of high‐stage, inoperable breast tumors. The relative af‐fordability of breast FNA enables many women with breast lesions to undergo a diagnostic procedure. The introduction of inexpensive, diagnostically accurate procedures, such as breast FNA, may prove to be of great benefit in countries with scant medical resources.