Touch Imprint Cytology in Oral Cancer Diagnosis: A Narrative Review
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Correspondence
Dr. Sumiran Sinha,
Harshringar Block C, Room No. 608, Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences, Indore-453555, Madhya Pradesh, India.
E-mail: sinha.sumirann@gmail.com
Touch Imprint Cytology (TIC) is a simple, economical, and cost-effective method that can be used as a rapid tool for tissue diagnosis. It has been used for the intraoperative diagnosis of cancer, evaluation of surgical cut margins, evaluation of sentinel lymph nodes, diagnosis of head and neck lesions, and postmortem diagnosis. Intraoperative diagnosis includes both frozen section and TIC, which provide rapid pathological consultation. Brush biopsy can also be used for cytological diagnosis and acts as an adjunct to histopathological and TIC diagnosis. It has been found that TIC yields satisfactory and adequate material for diagnosis, allowing early counselling and preparation of the patient for further processes without having to wait for the results of histopathology. As technology continues to evolve, ongoing research aims to enhance the utility and accuracy of TIC in oral cancer diagnosis. Advancements in imaging techniques, such as confocal microscopy and molecular analysis of TIC samples, hold promise for improving diagnostic sensitivity and specificity.