A breast biopsy is a standard procedure used to diagnose and characterize a number of breast lesions or lumps. A biopsy involves taking a small sample of tissue from the breast and characterizing the nature of the breast lesions through medical testing and microscopic examination. There are a number of types of biopsy samples, collected through a range of biopsy procedures, that help doctors identify and diagnose serious diseases like breast cancer.
Fine Needle Aspiration
The smallest type of breast biopsy specimen is a sample taken from a fine need aspiration biopsy. During this type of biopsy, the doctor inserts a very fine needle through the patient's skin and into the breast lump, collecting a small amount of tissue or fluid for analysis. Fine needle aspiration biopsies are typically used to diagnose fluid-filled breast cysts, so the breast biopsy specimen is often fluid from inside the cyst, which can then be examined. Doctors may also use a fine needle aspiration to extract a small biopsy specimen containing breast cells for further analysis. Cancer Supportive Care Programs indicates that due to the small tissue specimen obtained from a fine needle aspiration, the biopsy may be performed in combination with other medical tests to help diagnose breast lesions.
Large Core Biopsy
In some cases, analysis of a breast lesion requires a larger biopsy specimen, such as tissue obtained from a large core biopsy. During this procedure, the doctor creates a small incision in the affected breast, and uses a large needle to obtain a piece of tissue approximately the size of a wine cork, according to Imaginis. With a larger biopsy specimen, a doctor can analyze cells within the breast tumor to look for the presence of cancer, as well as examine the tissue directly surrounding the breast lesion. Together, the data extracted from a large core biopsy specimen allow medical professionals to characterize the severity and invasiveness of a breast lesion without resorting to surgery.
Surgical Biopsy
Occasionally doctors may require a very large biopsy tissue specimen to study the characteristics of a breast lesion. A surgical biopsy allows doctors to collect the tissue from an entire breast lump, or a large part of the lump, for analysis and characterization. To do this, the doctor makes an incision in the breast with the patient under anesthetic and surgically removes a large part, or all of the breast lesion. If the breast biopsy specimen indicates that the lesion is non-cancerous, or benign, the surgical biopsy has acted as a treatment for the growth, since the biopsy procedure removed the entire tumor. If the surgical biopsy specimen contains cancer cells, the doctor may prescribe additional treatment to kill or remove any remaining cancer cells.
