Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 16, 2026

Author Spotlight: 3D Scanning and Augmented Reality for Enhanced Cancer Surgery Communication

Author Spotlight: 3D Scanning and Augmented Reality for Enhanced Cancer Surgery Communication

Published on: December 15, 2023

Frozen section during partial nephrectomy: does it predict positive margins?

Jennifer Gordetsky¹, Michael A Gorin², Joe Canner³

¹Departments of Pathology and Urology, The University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL, USA.

BJU International

|March 11, 2015

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Immunophenotypic assessment of pure embryonal carcinoma and yolk sac tumour suggests that reprogramming to non-seminoma occurs outside the spermatogonial niche.

Histopathology·2026

Same author

MicroRNA-371-373 cluster and methylome analysis suggests that a subset of 'somatic-type' malignancies arising in germ cell tumors may originate in yolk sac tumor components.

The Journal of pathology·2025

Same author

Renal oncocytoma: a challenging diagnosis.

Current opinion in oncology·2022

Same author

Diagnosis of "cribriform" prostatic adenocarcinoma: an interobserver reproducibility study among urologic pathologists with recommendations.

American journal of cancer research·2021

Same author

Otolaryngologist Characteristics and Outlier Use of Balloon Sinuplasty in the Medicare Population.

The Laryngoscope·2021

Same author

The Genitourinary Pathology Society Update on Classification and Grading of Flat and Papillary Urothelial Neoplasia With New Reporting Recommendations and Approach to Lesions With Mixed and Early Patterns of Neoplasia.

Advances in anatomic pathology·2021

Same journal

Ablative radiotherapy in castration-resistant prostate cancer.

BJU international·2026

Same journal

Longitudinal circulating tumour DNA identifies patients at high risk of upstaging and recurrence in non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer.

BJU international·2026

Same journal

Venous thromboembolism after penile cancer surgery: a UK PeCaN study.

BJU international·2026

Same journal

Comment on 'Tumour size outperforms nephrometry scores to predict surgical success following partial nephrectomy'.

BJU international·2026

Same journal

STHLM3 NorDCaP: prospective multicentre trial of Stockholm3 for active surveillance biopsy guidance.

BJU international·2026

Same journal

F-URS with FANS versus mPCNL for 2-3 cm UUTS: a RCT with a subgroup analysis of 2-2.5 cm stones.

BJU international·2026

See all related articles

Frozen section (FS) analysis during partial nephrectomy (PN) has limited clinical utility. Its routine use is not recommended due to a high false-negative rate and inconsistent impact on intra-operative decisions.

Area of Science:

Urology
Surgical Pathology
Oncology

Background:

Partial nephrectomy (PN) is a standard treatment for renal tumors.
Frozen section (FS) analysis is sometimes used intraoperatively during PN to assess margins and tumor type.
The clinical utility and impact of FS on intraoperative management in PN remain subjects of investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the clinical utility of intraoperative frozen section (FS) analysis during partial nephrectomy (PN).
To evaluate the influence of FS on intraoperative management decisions.
To assess the concordance rates of FS diagnoses with final pathology.

Main Methods:

Retrospective analysis of 351 partial nephrectomy (PN) cases from 2010 to 2013.
Evaluation of concordance between intraoperative FS, FS control diagnosis, and final specimen margins.

Keywords:

frozen section margins partial nephrectomy

More Related Videos

Intraoperative Assessment of Resection Margins in Oral Cavity Cancer: This is the Way

Intraoperative Assessment of Resection Margins in Oral Cavity Cancer: This is the Way

Published on: May 10, 2021

5/6 Nephrectomy Using Sharp Bipolectomy Via Midline Laparotomy in Rats

5/6 Nephrectomy Using Sharp Bipolectomy Via Midline Laparotomy in Rats

Published on: April 4, 2025

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Apr 16, 2026

Author Spotlight: 3D Scanning and Augmented Reality for Enhanced Cancer Surgery Communication

Author Spotlight: 3D Scanning and Augmented Reality for Enhanced Cancer Surgery Communication

Published on: December 15, 2023

Intraoperative Assessment of Resection Margins in Oral Cavity Cancer: This is the Way

Intraoperative Assessment of Resection Margins in Oral Cavity Cancer: This is the Way

Published on: May 10, 2021

5/6 Nephrectomy Using Sharp Bipolectomy Via Midline Laparotomy in Rats

5/6 Nephrectomy Using Sharp Bipolectomy Via Midline Laparotomy in Rats

Published on: April 4, 2025

Review of operating reports for changes in intraoperative management based on FS results.

Main Results:

A total of 576 intraoperative FSs were performed.
High concordance (98.3%) was observed between intraoperative FS and FS control diagnoses.
A 5.4% rate of FS for tumor type assessment was noted.
Final positive margins occurred in 8.5% of cases.
Intraoperative management was influenced in a minority of cases with positive or atypical FS findings.

Conclusions:

The routine use of frozen section (FS) in partial nephrectomy (PN) is not supported.
Arguments against routine FS include a relatively high false-negative rate and inconsistent impact on intraoperative management.
Controversy surrounding the prognosis of positive margins further questions the utility of intraoperative FS in PN.