Biopsy

The type of biopsy you have will depend on where the sample is being taken from. It also depends on the type of cancer you may have. Your cancer doctor or specialist nurse will explain the test to you.

You may have the biopsy as an outpatient. But if the sample is being taken from an area or organ inside the body, you may need to stay in hospital for a short time.

The doctor or nurse will usually give you a local anaesthetic to numb the area. But you may have the biopsy under a general anaesthetic.

Sometimes doctors use a scan or x-ray. This helps them take the biopsy from the exact area.

The biopsy should not be painful, but it may feel uncomfortable. You may feel some pressure for a short time during the test.

After the biopsy, you may have 1 or 2 stitches. The doctor or nurse will put a dressing over the area to keep it clean. You may ache or feel some pain after the biopsy. Taking mild painkillers can help with this.

The main types of biopsy include the following:

• Fine needle aspiration (FNA) – a doctor or nurse puts a very fine needle into the area and withdraws a few drops of fluid containing a sample of cells.
• Core biopsy – a doctor or nurse uses a slightly larger, hollow needle to remove a larger sample of cells.
• Excision biopsy – a doctor cuts through the skin to remove the whole lump or abnormal area.
• Incision biopsy – a doctor cuts through the skin to remove part of the lump or abnormal area.
• Endoscopic biopsy – a doctor or nurse uses a thin, flexible tube with a camera on the end (endoscope) to take samples of cells from inside the body. This may be used for biopsies in the gullet (oesophagus), stomach or bowel.

Other types of biopsy include:

• vacuum-assisted biopsy (VAB)
• wire-guided localisation
• cone biopsy
• image-guided biopsy – done with a CT scan or ultrasound scan, or sometimes an x-ray
• punch biopsy.