Fine-needle aspiration diagnosis of spindle-cell lipoma: A case report and review of the literature

Spindle-cell lipoma (SCL) is an uncommon subcutaneous soft-tissue neoplasm that usually arises in the posterior neck and shoulder of older male patients. To our knowledge, there have been only two reports describing the cytologic findings of this benign tumor, only one of which was confirmed by subsequent histologic examination. We report on a SCL of the occipital scalp in a 62-yr-old man diagnosed by fine-needle aspiration. Air-dried and alcohol-fixed smears revealed scattered clusters of mildly pleomorphic spindled cells admixed with mature adipocytes, numerous mast cells, and small fragments of collagen. The diagnosis was confirmed by histologic sections and immunohistochemical studies for CD34 and bcl-2 oncoprotein. Cytomorphologic features of SCL and a review of the literature are presented. Diagn. Cytopathol.2000;23:362–365. © 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.