Guidelines for processing and reporting of prostatic needle biopsies
- Th H van der Kwast1,
- C Lopes2,
- C Santonja3,
- C-G Pihl4,
- I Neetens5,
- P Martikainen6,
- S Di Lollo7,
- L Bubendorf8,
- R F Hoedemaeker1,
- members of The Pathology Committee Of The European Randomised Study Of Screening For Prostate Cancer (ERSPC)
- 1Department of Pathology, Erasmus Medical Center, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- 2Department of Anatomy-Pathology, Instituto Português de Oncologia de Francisco Gentil, 4200 Porto, Portugal
- 3Department of Anatomy-Pathology, Hospital Universitario de Getafe, 28905 Getafe (Madrid), Spain
- 4Department of Pathology, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Östra, S-41685 Göteborg, Sweden
- 5Department of Pathology, Academic Hospital Middelheim, 2020 Antwerp, Belgium
- 6Department of Pathology, Centre for Laboratory Medicine, FIN-33521 Tampere, Finland
- 7Department of Pathology, University of Florence, 50134 Florence, Italy
- 8Institue of Pathology, University of Basel, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland
- Correspondence to: Professor Th H van der Kwast, Department of Pathology, Josephine Nefkens Institute, Erasmus Medical Center, PO Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands; vanderkwast{at}path.fgg.eur.nl
- Accepted 25 October 2002
Abstract
The reported detection rate of prostate cancer, lesions suspicious for cancer, and prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN) in needle biopsies is highly variable. In part, technical factors, including the quality of the biopsies, the tissue processing, and histopathological reporting, may account for these differences. It has been thought that standardisation of tissue processing might reduce the observed variations in detection rate. Consensus among the members of the pathology committee of the European Randomised study of Screening for Prostate Cancer (ERSPC) concerning the optimal methodology of tissue embedding resulting in guidelines for prostatic needle biopsy processing was reached. The adoption of an unequivocal and uniform way of reporting lesions encountered in prostatic needle biopsies is considered helpful for decision taking by the clinician. The definition of parameters for quality control of prostatic needle biopsy diagnostics will further facilitate clinical epidemiological multicentre studies of prostate cancer.
- ERSPC, European Randomised Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer
- PIN, prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia
- PSA, prostate specific antigen
