Cytodiagnostic Sensitivity of Fine Needle Aspiration Biopsy for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma Is Decreased in Patients with Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection

Objective: We aimed to evaluate the sensitivity of fine needle aspiration (FNA) for the diagnosis of Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) in HIV-infected patients. Study Design: An electronic search was conducted to retrospectively identify patients diagnosed with HL who underwent FNA followed by confirmatory biopsy. FNAs were categorized as negative, atypical/suspicious/positive, or nondiagnostic. Diagnostic sensitivity in HIV+ and HIV– patients was statistically compared via Fisher’s exact test, with a p value <0.05 considered significant. Results: Thirty-six patients meeting inclusion criteria were identified (24 HIV– and 12 HIV+). Average age was 36.0 ± 11.5 and 36.5 ± 7.4 years (means ± SD) in HIV– and HIV+ patients, respectively. The male-to-female ratio was 1.4:1 in HIV– patients versus 3:1 in HIV+ patients. Among these 36 patients, a total of 42 FNAs were performed. Overall sensitivity of FNA was 66.7% (95% confidence interval: 52.4–80.9%). When stratified by HIV status, a statistically significant difference in FNA sensitivity was detected, as sen­sitivity was 84.6% (70.8–98.4%) in HIV– patients versus only 37.5% (13.8–61.2%) in HIV+ patients (p =0.003). Conclusion: The diagnostic sensitivity of FNA biopsy was significantly attenuated in the HIV+ cohort. In HIV-infected patients presenting with lymphadenopathy, increased clinical suspicion of HL is critical to avoid misdiagnosis.