Cytopathology-histopathology of the mediastinum

An appraisal of the cytopathology and corresponding histopathology of epithelial, germ cell, and lymphoid lesions of the mediastinum was previously reported in the Journal. This report aims to complete that topic with a discussion focusing on the correlative cyto-histopathology of the major mesenchymal, neural, and neuroendocrine neoplasms from this anatomic site. As previously stated, the mediastinum remains an uncommon site for fine needle aspiration (FNA) biopsy when compared with other anatomic sites. Yet, the recent use of endoscopic ultrasound-guided FNA for sampling mediastinal masses may increase this use. The purpose of this review is to focus on the shared and dissimilar morphologic features of this subset of neoplasms to improve diagnostic correlation between the two.