Value of fine needle aspiration cytology in the diagnosis of testicular neoplasms

In 403 patients with a clinical suspicion of a testicular neoplasm, fine needle aspiration (FNA) was performed on the scrotal mass in 380 cases and on an extrascrotal swelling in 23 cases. There were 109 unsatisfactory aspirates. Fluid was aspirated in 50 cases, and only normal testicular elements were obtained in 82 cases. The aspirate showed an inflammatory lesion in 104 cases. A diagnosis of malignancy or suspicious for malignancy was given in 52 and 6 cases, respectively. Histopathologic confirmation of malignancy was available for 30 cases, for which the aspirate had been reported as malignant in 23, suspicious for malignancy in 3, unsatisfactory in 2 and negative for malignancy in 2. There were no false-positive FNA cytodiagnoses. No local seeding of tumor by the FNA procedure was observed. Typing of the testicular tumors on the aspirates showed a problem in classifying teratocarcinomas.