What are the major indications for image guided percutaneous needle biopsy?
Image-guided percutaneous needle biopsy (IPNB) is an established, effective nonsurgical procedure that is performed in selected patients to obtain a pathologic diagnosis or to guide appropriate patient management. Indications for percutaneous needle biopsy include:
- • To determine if a lesion is benign or malignant.
- • To obtain material for microbiological analysis in suspected infection.
- • To stage disease in patients with known or suspected malignancy.
- • To obtain material for biomarker, protein, or genotype analysis to subsequently guide targeted therapies in select patients.
- • To determine the primary cell type in patients with metastatic disease and an unknown primary tumor.
- • To diagnose certain diffuse parenchymal diseases (e.g., in the liver and kidneys).
