Evaluation of Sample Adequacy: Cytologic Criteria

Abstract

The main objects of microscopical evaluation in endometrial cytology are endometrial glandular epithelial cells and endometrial stromal cells. Both these cells and the structure of the cell-clusters exhibit morphological changes under the influence of sex hormones. Therefore, during a cytological examination, the examiner must be informed of the hormonal state of the examinee. Some drugs are known to affect the endometrial cyto-histomorphology; thus, it is also important to have examinee’s drug history. Generally, in the cytologic diagnostic evaluation of glandular cells, cell-cluster findings are as important as individual cell findings. Consequently, sufficient cell quantity and quality are required for observing the structure of the cell-cluster in endometrial cytology, with special attention to the evaluation of glandular epithelial cells. When preparing specimens for cytological analysis, it is important to have enough cells and to preserve cell structure. Specifically, it is important that cell-clusters remain intact. In addition, blood and inflammatory cells should be removed or prevented as much as possible from covering the cell-clusters, as this hampers their microscopical evaluation. Therefore, it is necessary to establish a quality standard of the sample before cytologic diagnosis. TYS included criteria for assessing the adequacy of cytology samples.