Breast Aspiration

	It is a good idea to outline the cyst with a surgical pencil.
	Prepping with an alcohol swab is adequate.
	I will often have the patient push against one side of the cyst to keep it from slipping away
	Once the cyst is fixed in place, a 22 guage needle can be inserted and the fluid extracted. No local anaesthesia is required.
	The sample is sent for cytologic examination, although most of the time the fluid is benign.
	If the "cyst" cannot be aspirated and appears to be solid, further evaluation with mammography and core biopsy is warranted

This page last updated March 14, 1997