[The fine needle biopsy, a safe method for intraoperative differentiation of tumours of the pancreas (author's transl)].

High diagnostic accuracy (with increasing experience up to 90 per cent) and the absence of complications characterize the fine needle biopsy of the pancreas so far applied to 92 patients. This cytodiagnostic method is of great clinical importance, especially, for the intraoperative differentiation of small tumours for which pancreatoduodenectomy is only indicated in cases of carcinomas.