"Interventional cytopathologist" was first proposed in 1988 in the USA. In the past two decades, many pathologists have gradually stepped up from behind the microscope to the frontlines of patient care as we started to see patients collecting pertinent clinical history, conducting physical examination, gathering other ancillary test results, performing FNA biopsy, formulating clinico-pathologic diagnosis, and discussing the results of the FNA biopsy with the patients after the procedure. This one-stop approach of FNA biopsy with or without ultrasound guidance, similar to the clinical cytologist model in the Scandinavian countries, has generated tremendous interests among pathologists who are clinically oriented, not only for the best patient care, but also for the opportunity to expand their practice.

This course is practically-oriented with case-based presentation, focusing on biopsy technique, basic ultrasound knowledge for the pathologists to use in superficial FNA/core biopsy, and ultrasonographic features with cytologic patterns of commonly encountered lesions of the head and neck organs and the breast. The application of ultrasound-guided core biopsy for histologic confirmation and ancillary studies in cytologically challenging, indeterminate, or malignant cases will also be presented. The course will end with coding, billing principals, and various marketing strategies for participants who are interested in setting up or expanding independent FNA services for business development.

Upon completion of this educational activity, the participants should be able to: 1) Describe and recognize palpable and non-palpable lesions on ultrasound; 2) Use ultrasound probe as a tool to place the needle in the targeted lesions for biopsy; and 3) Correlate ultrasonographic images with cytologic features to make an accurate diagnosis of common lesions.

The course is designed for the pathologists who currently perform FNA and wish to incorporate ultrasound into their practice or to improve their technical and interpretation skills, the cytopathology fellows, and the senior residents who are proficient in performing FNA and wish to get acquainted with the ultrasound technology for their future practice. It is also designed for the residents, the cytology fellows, and the practicing pathologists who wish to sharpen their diagnostic skills in FNA materials of the above superficial organs in a practical and systemic way.

(NEW COURSE)