Biopsy

Procedures used to diagnose cancer can often be frightening, especially when you just don’t know what to expect.  A little knowledge and information about what’s employed in the diagnosis of mesothelioma can go a long way in comforting the nervous patient about normal procedures such as biopsies, often necessary to accurately diagnose your disease.

What’s a Biopsy?

Literally, the word biopsy comes from the Greek for “view of the living.”  A biopsy involves removing a sample of tissue from the patient and sending it to a pathologist for examination.  Nearly all cancers involve a biopsy for diagnosis.

Some biopsies require no anesthesia at all, while others involve a local anesthetic and others require surgery.  Once the biopsy is complete, the pathologist, who specializes in rendering medical diagnoses by examination of tissues and fluids removed from the body, will examine it and prepare a report as to his findings, which will be sent to your primary doctor or oncologist.  Patients usually have no contact with the pathologist and some reports take days or even a few weeks.

Types of Biopsies

If your doctor is leaning towards a diagnosis of mesothelioma, he will probably first order a CT Scan or MRI.  Following one of those procedures, the first biopsy performed may be the removal and examination of fluid around the lung.  However, most healthcare professionals believe this procedure is inconclusive in accurately diagnosing mesothelioma.

Instead, the doctor may prefer a tissue biopsy.  This can be achieved in several different ways.  Some will opt for a laparoscopy or thoracoscopy, which involves making a small incision and using a tiny camera to look at the affected area.  A tissue sample can be taken during this procedure. 

Others will choose to do a needle biopsy to obtain tissue samples.  This is accomplished by inserting a thin, hollow needle through the skin and into the chest cavity. 

Most doctors, however, prefer an open lung biopsy, which involves surgery under general anesthesia.  During this procedure, an incision is made and a small piece of lung tissue is removed and then examined by a pathologist.  A chest tube may be left in place for a few days to prevent the lung from collapsing.  The patient may feel some lingering pain after the surgery but will feel nothing during the procedure.