Diagnostic Validity of FNAC and Trucut Biopsy with Post Operative Histopathological Report in Cases of Breast Lumps at a Tertiary Care Center

Introduction: Lump in breast is a common complaint in surgical practice. The lesions of the breast have diverse aetiology and presentation may range from a benign tumour, cyst or a malignancy. The diagnostic methods for palpable breast lumps should be rapid, inexpensive, most accurate and least invasive to evaluate and distinguish between benign and malignant lumps in outpatient clinics. Thus, patients are more compliant and surgeons can be more certain about the definitive management. Aims and Objectives: In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of FNAC and TRUCUT biopsy in screening of palpable breast lumps by taking histopathological reports as gold standard. Materials and Methods: It is a Diagnostic validity test, undertaken in the department of surgery in a tertiary care centre. Data collection was done by extensive history taking, clinical examination, FNAC, TRUCUT biopsy and post-operative histopathology. Results: Study was conducted on 145 patients. Out of the total, 99 (68.3%) reports were benign pathologies; fibroadenoma (61.6%) was the most common, while 46 (31.7%) were malignant pathologies and intra-ductal carcinoma was the most common (40 out of 46 cases; 88.9%). Overall diagnostic accuracy of FNAC was 93.1%, whereas that of TRUCUT biopsy was 96.6%. Conclusion: We thus conclude that both FNAC and TRUCUT biopsy are accurate methods in breast diagnostic practice. The methods are complementary and depend on the skill and experience of the individuals performing the sampling and interpretation. The clinicians should also know the advantages and disadvantages of both the procedures to decide accordingly.