Bladder

Abstract

Biopsy specimens of the urinary bladder are generally removed through the cystoscope. They vary from single and minute to numerous, large, and papillary. Orientation of these specimens is generally impossible, even for the larger papillary fragments. Biopsies of neoplasms potentially hold important information regarding tumor type, tumor grade, and extent of tumor invasion into the various layers of the bladder wall. By following two simple rules, you can avoid missing this crucial information. First, be sure to submit all of the pieces of tissue for processing and multiple sectioning. Second, avoid the common mistake of overfilling specimen cassettes with tissue fragments. Keep in mind that portions of the specimen will not be sampled if they are “buried” within a crowded cassette. In addition, we strongly recommend that the urologist submit superficial and deep tumor biopsies as separate specimens to facilitate the detection of deep muscle invasion.