Nipple cytology variables Any underlying pathology Malignancy Sensitivity Specificity PPV* NPV† Sensitivity Specificity PPV* NPV† Presence of RBC (n=94) 87 29 51 73 69.2 20.6 9.6 84.6 Presence of epithelial cells (n=57) 49 53.84 47.4 55.6 38.5 51.4 8.7 87.3 *PPV=Positive predictive value; †Negative predictive value

Table 2: Predictability of individual components of the nipple cytology.