Comparative analysis of sensitivity and specificity between fine needle aspiration and core needle biopsy in breast cancer diagnosis: Meta-analysis

Objective: To compare the sensitivity and specificity of Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA) and Core Needle Biopsy (CNB) in diagnosing breast cancer (BC).
Methods: A thorough investigation of the PubMed, Google Scholar, Cochrane Library, and Embase databases up to October 03, 2018, was conducted to pinpoint important literature. The analysis delved into the sensitivity and specificity rates of FNA and CNB to gauge their diagnostic efficacy. The synthesis of findings was achieved through meta-analysis using Rev-Man 5.4 software.
Results: Our study comprised five studies involving 1,177 patients, assessing the sensitivity and specificity rates of FNA and CNB. Sensitivity rates for FNA and CNB were found to be 68.6% and 88.1%, respectively, whereas specificity rates for FNAC and CNB stood at 96.1% and 97.2%, respectively. Comparison between FNA and CNB demonstrated a statistically significant variance in sensitivity (OR: 0.30, 95% CI [0.21, 0.41], P < 0.00001), indicative of CNB’s superior diagnostic accuracy. However, specificity comparison between FNAC and CNB yielded non-significant results (OR: 0.54, 95% CI [0.17, 1.69], P = 0.29).
Conclusion: FNA and CNB are crucial tools in diagnosing breast cancer, each with unique strengths and limitations. FNA demonstrates higher sensitivity, while both techniques show high specificity.