Medical tests like a breast core biopsy prove valuable in allowing doctors to examine and diagnose abnormal breast lumps. During a core biopsy, the doctor inserts a needle through the patient's skin and guides the needle into the breast lump. The doctor then collects a small specimen of tissue from inside the lump, then repeats the process to collect a series of samples for medical testing. Although an effective diagnostic tool, a breast core biopsy also has a few disadvantages.
Risk of Infection
An unavoidable disadvantage of a breast core biopsy is the small risk of infection after the procedure. Any medical procedure that breaks the skin provides an opportunity for bacteria, fungi or viruses to enter the body through the skin and colonize tissues within the breast. An infection following a breast core biopsy can cause swelling, pain and redness, and can lead to more serious disorders like breast abscesses. To minimize the risk of infection, doctors perform breast biopsies under the most sterile conditions possible. Proper biopsy procedure, combined with careful wound cleaning and bandaging after the procedure, can drastically minimise the risk of infection. Patients who do contract an infection following a breast core biopsy typically receive antibiotics to kill infectious bacteria.
Scarring
Another disadvantage of a breast core biopsy is scarring at the biopsy site, corresponding to the needle injection sites. Since a breast core biopsy uses a medium-gauge needle, patients who receive this type of breast biopsy typically develop small round scars after the procedure, according to the New York University Medical Center. Patients who undergo a core needle biopsy may also develop scarring in the internal breast tissue, which can obscure small breast lumps and lesions in a mammogram. To minimize unneeded scarring, doctors typically perform the least invasive biopsy procedure possible to diagnose a breast lump.
Insufficient Tissue Collection
In some cases, a breast core biopsy may have the disadvantage of not allowing the doctor to collect sufficient breast lump tissue to make a diagnosis. Lumps that occur deep within the breast tissue may be difficult to access with a simple needle biopsy, with each core needle biopsy specimen containing a breast deal of healthy breast tissue closer to the skin. Alternatively, the relatively small samples obtained with a breast core biopsy may not allow the doctor to accurately diagnose and assess the severity of some breast lumps. In these cases, doctors may opt for more invasive biopsy procedures, such as surgical biopsies, that allow for larger tissue collection and analysis.
