Prostate biopsy: current status and limitations

The technique of prostate biopsy has evolved over the past 10 years to improve our ability to detect prostate cancer. Extended biopsy schemes can be performed in the office under local anesthesia and are well tolerated. In addition to detection, the role of extended biopsy schemes in refining tumor grading and risk assessment has become better defined. This review discusses the evolution of prostate biopsy techniques from the sextant scheme to the extended scheme and demonstrates the latter's utility in clinical decision making.