A biopsy is a procedure used to obtain a piece of tissue for further examination. It is usually done to rule out the suspected diagnosis of cancer. The tissue is usually examined by a pathologist, who is a doctor with specialized training in...
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...
The thyroid--a butterfly-shaped gland located beneath the voice box--regulates the body's energy level. The thyroid can become enlarged for many possible reasons, the Mayo Clinic explains. A biopsy, removal of cells from the thyroid for...
Breast cancer is a progressive and potentially life-threatening disease. It is characterized by the rapid and unregulated proliferation of breast cells leading to tumor formation and invasion of neighboring tissues. Physicians can use breast...
Bone marrow contains red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. To help diagnose blood and bone marrow diseases as well as infections, a physician may perform a bone marrow aspiration or biopsy. A large needle is inserted into the bone, and...
Mammograms are used to screen for breast cancer. In some cases, the mammograms or other radiologic exams may not fully clarify what is happening in the breast. All suspicious mammograms or breast lumps are not necessarily indicative of cancer;...
The National Cancer Institute estimates that in 2010, over 200,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. They further state that a biopsy is the only way to be certain that cancer is present or not. This procedure involves the physical...
Finding a breast in your lump can be frightening because it raises fears about cancer. Fortunately not all breast lumps are cancerous, including lumps caused by fat necrosis. Fat necrosis is more common in women with large breasts and can occur...
A bone marrow aspiration and biopsy both classify as procedures to test the spongy tissue inside the larger bones of the body. These tests determine the health of the marrow as well as checking for certain cancers and marrow diseases. The bone...
Breast cancer is a difficult diagnosis to get. For many patients, they would like to read their pathology report to understand better what is happening with their body. The pathology report is written by the patient's pathologist, which discusses...
The term blood cancer refers to leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells. These cells, which routinely help the body fight off infections, undergo changes that make them cancerous, growing unchecked and invading body tissues. At the same time,...
According to Dr. Kelly Maloney, of The Children's Hospital of Denver, in "Current Diagnosis & Treatment: Pediatrics," there are 200 to 300 cases of retinoblastoma every year. Ninety percent of the cases are diagnosed in children who are...
Red blood cells carried oxygen from the lungs to the various muscles and organs of the body. The main component of red blood cells is the molecule hemoglobin, which binds to oxygen and later releases it. A red blood cell count is a measure of...
Myeloma bone disease, also called multiple myeloma, is a disease that occurs when the body makes too many plasma cells. Plasma cells are a type of white blood cell that develops in the bone marrow; when there is a proliferation of these cells,...
The male breast is composed of a mixture of tissue types, any of which may give rise to a mass or swelling. Cancerous breast tumors in men are rare, but do occur. Men can also develop benign, or non-cancerous breast disorders, causing breast...
Vitamin B-12 is one of the only water-soluble vitamins that is stored in the body, according to Medline Plus, a service of the National Institutes of Health. Most water-soluble vitamins are quickly excreted through the urine. However, vitamin B-12...
Breast biopsies diagnose breast cancer in women who have suspicious lumps or breast changes. While the prospect of cancer causes great concern for many women, learning about breast biopsies can help ease some of the fears about the diagnostic...
Bone marrow is the spongy tissue found in the center of bones. It is responsible for making red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. Marrow is mainly found in flat bones such as the skull, ribs, vertebrae, shoulder blades, hip bones,...
According to Breastcancer.org, breast cancer starts in the milk-producing glands known as the lobules, or the breast ducts, which are channels that run from the lobules to the nipple. It can also begin in the fibrous connective tissue of the...
Breast cancer is the leading cancer in American women, and most people know someone who has been touched by this disease. If a woman finds a lump in her breast or receives abnormal mammogram results, it's normal to feel a sense of urgency about...
Breast cancer develops from the ducts or lobules that make up the breast glandular tissue or within the nipple. Breast lumps, whether benign or cancerous, may be detected during a physical self-examination, clinical exam or a mammogram. Following...
Bone marrow, the spongy inner part of bones, produces platelets, red blood cells and white blood cells. Bone-marrow testing assesses the health of a patient's bone marrow. Sampling of bone marrow requires either a biopsy or aspiration procedure....
Because mesothelioma is a relatively rare disease, it often is only diagnosed when a patient comes in complaining of its symptoms. Mesothelioma in the chest causes shortness of breath as well as pain upon breathing and coughing. It can also cause...
Bone marrow aspiration is often one of the first aspects of a bone marrow test. With a bone marrow aspiration, a doctor uses a syringe with a large, hollow needle to extract some of the liquid bone marrow from the body. The bone marrow is often...
Leukemia is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow. The main characteristic of leukemia is the production of too many leukocytes, or white blood cells. Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is one of four types of leukemia. While all forms involve the...
Osteomyelitis is an infection of the bone. According to Mayo Clinic, infections reach the bone by way of the blood vessels and nearby tissues. Traumatic injuries to the bone can create an entryway for infection. The most commonly affected bones...
Osteomyelitis is one of the oldest diseases on record and as of 2010 affects two out of every 10,000 people, according to Joint-Pain-Forum.com. Osteomyelitis was very hard to control and treat until the development of antibiotics. The discovery of...
Renal cell carcinoma is a type of cancer that affects the small tubes in the kidneys. This is the most common type of renal cancer that affects adults and usually affects men between the ages of 50 and 70. Understanding renal cell carcinoma can...
Breast biopsies serve as an important diagnostic tool in characterizing breast lumps. Although doctors can determine the size, shape and some other characteristics of a breast lump using medical imaging, such as a mammogram, these technologies do...
