ASC-US stands for “atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance.” It is a term used in Pap smear results when some cells collected from the surface of the cervix appear slightly abnormal under the microscope. These changes are not completely normal, but they are also not clearly precancerous, which is why they are called “undetermined significance.” …
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A fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) is a medical procedure that uses a thin needle and suction to remove a small amount of tissue or fluid from an abnormal area of the body. Doctors commonly perform this procedure on abnormal areas of tissue in the thyroid gland, salivary glands, pancreas, breast, lung, lymph nodes, and …
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The transformation zone is a part of the cervix where the squamous cells that make up the ectocervix meet the glandular cells that make up the endocervix. In this area of the cervix, the glandular cells that make up the endocervix are slowly replaced by squamous cells. This process is called squamous metaplasia. As a …
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Negative for intraepithelial lesion or malignancy (NILM) is the most common and reassuring result from a Pap smear. It means that no precancerous or cancerous cells were found in the sample from your cervix. In other words, it is considered a normal result. How do pathologists make this diagnosis? The Pap smear is a screening …
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What does “suspicious for follicular neoplasm” mean? Suspicious for follicular neoplasm is a term pathologists use to describe an abnormal growth in the thyroid gland. It is a preliminary diagnosis that includes both non-cancerous and cancerous conditions. These conditions include: Adenomatoid nodule – Adenomatoid nodule is a non-cancerous type of growth in the thyroid gland. …
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What is a Pap test? The Pap test is a screening test that looks for abnormal cells in the vaginal portion of the uterine cervix. It is called a screening test because it is designed to detect disease before a person experiences any symptoms. The test was named after Dr. Georgios Papanicolaou who invented the …
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