Biopsy is currently the most accurate test for the diagnosis of prostate cancer, one of the most common tumors in men worldwide. But until now, most biopsies have been performed blindly, guided only by ultrasound. This system means that only the anatomical image of the prostate can be seen, without showing the areas suspected of being affected. Therefore, the specialist is obliged to take several samples from different parts of the prostate and even then it is possible that no abnormality is diagnosed.
Prostate biopsy by fusion of nuclear magnetic resonance imaging with ultrasound has solved the limitation of transrectal ultrasound in identifying suspicious lesions of malignancy, and has become the most accurate diagnostic tool for prostate cancer. It is a test especially indicated for patients with a previous negative prostate biopsy and persistently elevated PSA.
The end of blind biopsies
Through this new test, the images of the multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) are fused with the ultrasound, by means of various technical and anatomical parameters with which it is achieved that both images have a total coincidence.
At that moment the fusion is performed and by means of ultrasound control the urologist specialist directs the puncture needle to the exact point where the MRI indicates that there is a lesion suspicious of prostate cancer. Thus, four samples are obtained from each lesion and a mapping of the peripheral zone of both lobes, taking six samples from each.
Advantages of fusion prostate biopsy
The main advantage of fusion prostate biopsy is the great accuracy in delimiting the puncture area in suspicious lesions, with a higher percentage of diagnoses than other techniques.
The test lasts about half an hour and is performed in the operating room with the patient sedated, so he/she will not suffer any pain. After the biopsy the patient will only feel a slight discomfort in the perineum in the first hours, which is resolved by applying local cold and anti-inflammatory drugs.