Use of tissue ink to maintain identification of individual cores on needle biopsies of the prostate
Paras B Singh 1*, Ngiaw K Saw 2, Ahsanul Haq 2, Rosemary A Blades 2, Francis L Martin 3, Shyam S Matanhelia 2 and Caroline M Nicholson 2
1 Lancashire Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Lancaster University, United Kingdom
2 Lancashire Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom
3 Lancaster University, United Kingdom
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: parassingh{at}btinternet.com.
Accepted 19 June 2008
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Abstract |
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Background: There is an increasing necessity to extract the maximum amount of information, beyond even a cancer diagnosis, from prostate biopsies. Thus, maintaining site-specific information regarding individual biopsy cores might be critical.
Aim: To evaluate the applicability of employing tissue ink to maintain the identity of individual prostatic biopsy cores.
Method: In this ongoing study, 12 core prostate biopsy specimens are sent to the laboratory in individual pots labelled according to anatomical site. The biopsies are placed in two separate multi-compartment cassettes. They are inked with different colours to identify the site of origin from each lobe. The cassettes are then processed with a single paraffin block for each side and the six cores from each side can be mounted on a single slide.
Results: The different colours used adhere well to the biopsy cores, thus maintaining the identity of each core. Six cores from each side are embedded in a single paraffin block and examined on a single slide, making it cost-effective, while maintaining high quality, accurate histopathological information.
Conclusion: Differential inking of prostate biopsy cores is an easily applicable method that is cost-effective and provides tumour location information. Prostate biopsy data archived to maintain individual core information might be used to determine applicability of such information to determine extra-capsular extension by correlating with imaging and radical prostatectomy findings, and for treatment planning.
