“Is it better to have open or closed biopsy?”
My doctor found an abnormal lump in one of my mammograms. He has recommended to do an open biopsy to see if it's cancerous. But I heard from other doctors that closed biopsy has some advantages. Which one should I prefer?
5 Answers
Often a fine needle aspirate (closed biopsy) can provide adequate tissue for a diagnosis. However an excisional biopsy (open biopsy) will often provide a more accurate amount of tissue for a diagnosis. You need to ask this question of your doctor. That person is clearly of the opinion that an open biopsy is necessary to obtain an adequate tissue sample for an accurate diagnosis.
I am adamant about the first breast biopsy being closed IE. A needle biopsy to find out what the abnormality is. Many of these findings do not require surgery.
Best of luck!!!
Best of luck!!!
A closed biopsy is best, because it is an outpatient procedure, requiring local anesthesia, leaves a minimal skin opening, has less risk of infection, and does not damage the local lymphatic channels around the lump. This is important because we use those lymphatic channels to map out the test to check for tumor spread into your arm pit nosed, and this is crucial information in planning for cancer treatment. It also less expensive as open biopsy is a surgical procedure, often done in the operating room which costs much more.
A closed biopsy is the current standard of care. In fact, there are many good reasons not to do an open biopsy as a primary diagnostic procedure.
Always best to start with needle or closed biopsy. You need to ask if there is a reason he does not want to do a closed biopsy. Sometimes it is technically not possible.
