Effects on lymph node size, staging and primary tumor histology on diagnostic accuracy of axillary lymph node aspirate of breast cancers.

Introduction: Fine-needle aspiration cytology is preferred for axillary lymph node metastasis with low costs and minimal risks. To improve diagnostic performance by incorporating clinical-radiological-pathological parameters, a large cohort pre-operative aspirates in were reviewed for parameters affecting adequacy rate and accuracy.

Methods: Axillary nodal aspirates from three institutions with histologic correlation were retrieved.