Monday, September 26, 2011

What is fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC)?

FNAC

The short form of fine needle aspiration cytology is FNAC.We have another term that is FNAB which means fine needle aspiration biopsy.Actually  FNAC and FNAB are the same.But we use the term FNAC most.This test is invariably done by the the cyto-pathologists.FNAC which is a strong weapon to differentiate a benign tumor from a malignant one was first done at maimonides medical center.It is in USA.And it was the year 1981.
FNAC needle
In the picture you are seeing a fine needle.But in Bangladesh it is not used very much.The pathologists generally use general needle to perform FNAC.By this needle some tissue is taken from the swelling.Then it is examined under the microscope to see as there is any pathology.

In this figure you are seeing that some tissue is being collected from a swelling of the thyroid gland.
 FNAC is very easy and cheap than the normal biopsy.But it has some problem.If the pathologist misses the diseased cell to aspirate then the report of the FNAC will be normal though the person is carrying cellular such as benign or malignant tumor or any other disease.





1 comment:

  1. Fine needle aspiration is a relatively non-invasive, less painful and quicker method when compared to other methods of tissue sampling such as surgical biopsy. A cyst aspiration can also be achieved with a FNA, where the fluid is drained from a cyst with no need for analysis.

    ReplyDelete