Transrectal Biopsy Specimens Research Articles

Vulnerabilities of Prostate Glandular Concretions Considered as Artefacts: A Cross-sectional Biopsy Slide Study.

There is no clear consensus regarding the contour of prostatic glandular intraluminal concretions. This study enlightens the rational approach toward deciphering the true nature of these concretions and evaluates their role in normal routine histology of the prostate gland. Fifty hematoxylin and eosin slides that were prepared from procured transrectal biopsy specimens of normal prostate glands from asymptomatic patients suspected of having a prostatic disease but later found to be normal were retrospectively observed for the staining, contour, and positioning of the aggregated masses or concretions within their prostatic lumina and were then compared with the blood prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels. Although significant associations highlighting the utility of these masses in presumed pathological states of the gland were drawn by comparing their staining parameters and contours to those of their respective PSA levels, their interluminal contour variations and vivid staining appearances did not necessarily rule out the possibility of some of them being artefacts, provided they were assessed in totality with the surrounding acini. Intensely eosinophilic concretions were found in patients with a high mean age and those with high PSA levels. Prostatic intraluminal masses that were rounded tended to indicate pathological shifts within the gland; however, the possibility of them changing to artefacts during slide preparations could not be ruled out.

Determining the degree of alignment of prostate carcinoma in a rectal biopsy with radical prostatectomy in patients with prostate carcinoma

Background: The purpose of this study was to determine the degree of alignment of prostate carcinoma in a rectal biopsy with radical prostatectomy in patients with prostate carcinoma to determine which biopsy samples are consistent with surgical specimens. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, out of 122 patients with prostate cancer who had undergone radical prostatectomy surgery in Sina hospital of Tabriz 65 patients with clinical records and pathological reports of needle biopsy, and radical prostatectomy biopsy specimens were available.The required information was recorded in questionnaire made for this study, and then the pathologic report and Gleason score and lymph-vascular involvement of the specimens were determined separately and finally the Trans rectal pathology report of the biopsy was compared with the histopathology report of radical prostatectomy in each patient. Results: The most common Gleason score and radical prostatectomy score were 6 (41.5%) and 6(40%), respectively. The lowest frequency of Gleason score, radical of the prostatectomy, and Trans rectal biopsy score were 10 (3.1%), 8(4.6%)%), and 4(4.6%), respectively. Generally, 24.6% of the prostatectomy samples were similarly scored, while 63.1% reported Trans rectal biopsy specimens and 12.3% reported low Trans rectal biopsy. By grouping the samples into histopathology levels this association was 41.5% identical in terms of scores and 49.2% in excess and 9.2% in lower reporting. The most common histopathology degree was rarely (49%) in Trans rectal biopsy and moderate in 40% in radical prostatectomy about 43% of badly differentiated cancers in the surgical specimens remained at the same level and the highest reporting rates were in the group with a good degree of distinction (66%). The highest correlation between rectal biopsy samples and radical prostatectomy samples was at the 6th grade and lowest compliance rate was in 4th and 8th grades. Conclusion: The highest degree of alignment was in the bad differentiation group, which indicates the high predictive power of biopsy specimens at this degree of differentiation. The present study suggests that the size of the smaller prostate and the high pre-surgical PSA may be predictive of increasing the Gleason score after radical prostatectomy.

Diagnosis of Prostate Cancer: Repeated Transrectal Prostate Biopsy or Transurethral Resection

Transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy of the prostate is the major method by which prostate cancer is diagnosed. However, many patients might be overlooked with the initial biopsy. Not uncommonly, patients need repeated biopsies when they continue to exhibit suspicious clinical signs. This may cause psychological stress to both patients and doctors. The purpose of this study was to determine how many repeat transrectal biopsies are adequate for prostate cancer detection and when to switch to transurethral resection. We retrospectively studied a cohort of 2,996 patients who had undergone prostate biopsy. If the biopsy specimen was negative for malignancy, patients were given the choice of either being managed with observation or undergoing transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) if indicated. If there was a high suspicion of cancer, patients were advised to undergo additional biopsies. The primary endpoint of this study was a diagnosis of cancer. The cancer detection rate was 22.9% (685 of 2,996 patients) in specimens taken during the first transrectal biopsy, 8.7% in those taken during the second biopsy (32 of 336 patients), and 6.1% in those taken during the third biopsy (6 of 98 patients). The cancer detection rate of TURP after 1 negative biopsy result was 9.3% (35 of 375 patients), and that after 2 negative biopsy results was 17.1% (6 of 35 patients). TURP-derived specimens that were pathologically diagnosed as malignant had lower Gleason grade on average, no matter how many repeat biopsies there were in patients whose previous transrectal biopsy specimens were negative for malignancy (p=0.002 for 2 negative biopsy results and p=0.007 for 3 negative biopsy results). The chance of detecting malignancy beyond a third transrectal biopsy procedure is low. TURP, therefore, might be an alternative procedure for obtaining tissue for pathologic diagnosis, especially in patients with rising prostate-specific antigen levels and comorbid illnesses such as obstructive symptoms.

Is There a Better Way to Biopsy the Prostate? Prospects for a Novel Transrectal Systematic Biopsy Approach

The study reported here was undertaken to investigate a novel method of systematic, 3-dimensional, template-guided, transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy. The TargetScan transrectal ultrasound and prostatic biopsy system (Envisioneering Medical Technologies, St. Louis, MO) uses a stationary transrectal ultrasound probe that acquires 3-dimensional and simultaneous biplanar ultrasound imaging. With the use of prostate-specific measurements, targeted transrectal biopsy specimens of the prostate are taken. The precise location of each specimen is defined by 2 coordinates: depth in centimeters proximal from the apex of the prostate, and degree of rotation (clockwise or counterclockwise from 12 o'clock). This device has been evaluated when used with radical prostatectomy specimens. Studies on 20 radical prostatectomy specimens disclosed that simulated TargetScan biopsy correctly identified cancer in 16 (80%) prostates and high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia in 2 others. Simulated TargetScan biopsy correctly characterized 88% of prostatic octants in terms of whether or not they harbored cancer. This technique was reproducible from operator to operator, and 85% biopsy core concordance was attained when the TargetScan protocol was simulated in 2 urology residents. The TargetScan biopsy system seems to be an effective transrectal alternative to transperineal, 3-dimensional, ultrasound-guided biopsies. Its reproducibility from operator to operator suggests that it may be useful for guiding rebiopsy of specific locations within the prostate and for providing targeted focal prostate cancer therapy.

PREDICTING PATHOLOGICAL STAGE OF LOCALIZED PROSTATE CANCER USING VOLUME WEIGHTED MEAN NUCLEAR VOLUME

With the use of prostate specific antigen (PSA) and transrectal ultrasound guided biopsy of the prostate, increasing numbers of clinically localized prostate cancers have recently been detected. Presently, approximately 60% of men newly diagnosed with prostate cancer are believed to have organ confined disease but at the time of surgery less than 50% are ultimately found to have organ confined disease on final pathological analysis. Prediction of pathological stage before surgery using various prognostic factors is needed to determine whether radical prostatectomy is indicated. We have reported that estimates of volume weighted mean nuclear volume can accurately predict the prognosis of clinically localized prostate cancer treated with androgen ablation. In this study we examine whether estimates of mean nuclear volume can predict the pathological stage of cases treated with radical prostatectomy. A retrospective, prognostic study of 52 patients with clinically localized prostate cancer (21 cases T1c, 27 T2, 4 T3) diagnosed at Kobe City General Hospital between January 1996 and December 1999 and treated with radical prostatectomy was performed. Unbiased estimates of mean nuclear volume measured from transrectal biopsy specimens were compared with PSA at diagnosis, clinical stage, estimated tumor volume and Gleason score with regard to prediction of pathological stage. Univariate analysis revealed that estimates of mean nuclear volume (p <0.0001), PSA at diagnosis (p = 0.0148) and estimated tumor volume (p = 0.0005) significantly correlated with pathological stage but Gleason score did not (p = 0.2011). In addition, multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that estimates of mean nuclear volume (p = 0. 0073), PSA at diagnosis (p = 0.0277) and estimated tumor volume (p = 0.0197) were significantly independent predictors of pathological stage. The results of our study suggest that combining PSA and estimated tumor volume with estimates of mean nuclear volume can significantly contribute to the prediction of pathological stage of prostate cancer. We recommend use of these 3 factors to predict pathological stage of prostate cancer before surgery.

Intratumoral heterogeneity in prostate cancer demonstrated by volume-weighted mean nuclear volume.

This study was conducted to investigate the degree of heterogeneity of the volume-weighted mean nuclear volume (MNV) calculated from radical prostatectomy specimens, and to evaluate how closely the MNV calculated from transrectal biopsy specimens reflected the overall malignancy. MNV was evaluated using 77 sections of histological specimens from 9 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy at Shizuoka City Hospital between January 1990 and December 1995. The MNV values calculated from radical prostatectomy specimens were compared with those calculated from preoperative transrectal biopsy specimens. MNV was judged to be homogeneous in six cases and heterogeneous in three cases. Of the heterogeneous cases, MNV calculated from the transrectal biopsy specimens was judged to be underestimated in 2 of 3 cases. This study shows that intratumoral heterogeneity of prostate cancer may affect clinical estimates of the grade of malignancy based on the MNV, and indicates the need for a sufficient number of specimens in order to evaluate the MNV by transrectal biopsy.