Centrifugal cytology of nipple aspirate cells.

Two improvements in the methodology for obtaining and preparing nipple aspirates from nonlactating women are reported. The first is the development and use of a new breast pump with a controllable vacuum and cups of various sizes. The second is the use of centrifugal cytology to prepare the dispersions. Twenty-one of 24 breasts of patients in the age range 30 to 49 years produced cellular dispersions which contained foam cells; of them, 13 contained ductal cells. A comparison of glutaraldehyde and ethanol fixation indicated that the cells appeared substantially the same.