The prostate biopsy
is used to determine definitively whether or not a patient
has prostate cancer. 6-13 samples of the prostate gland
are removed during this procedure and then are examined
underneath the microscope by a pathologist. A pathologist
can tell from the structure of the cells whether or
not the patient has prostate cancer. Cancerous cells
that are not aggressive look similar to healthy cells
and are called well-differentiated. Cancerous cells
that are aggressive look very different from healthy
cells and are called poorly-differentiated. The prostate
cancer Gleason score, which measures the aggressiveness
of the prostate cancer, is derived from these tissue
samples. Most men test negative for their first prostate
biopsy, but a doctor may order a follow-up biopsy based
on the man’s family history or PSA velocity.
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