Alveolar soft-part sarcoma diagnosed by fine needle aspiration biopsy and electron microscopy

A case of alveolar soft-part sarcoma diagnosed by fine needle aspiration cytology is reported. The cytologic findings from both Diff-Quick and Pananicolaou stained slides showed cells arranged in both clusters and individually, with rare groups of cells mimicking an alveolar pattern. The individual cells showed minimal nuclear pleomorphism and eccentrically placed vesicular nuclei; some had 1 to 2 small prominent nucleoli and moderate amounts of granular cytoplasm. These features are suggestive of alveolar softpart sarcoma in the appropriate clinical setting. The cytopathologic diagnosis was subsequently confirmed by the histopathologic study of the cell block preparation and by the electron microscopy submitted from the aspirated material. (The J Histotechnol 16:375, 1993).