High-Content Biopsies Facilitate Molecular Analyses and Do Not Increase Complication Rates in Patients With Advanced...

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Pathology
• Genomics

Background:

• Precision oncology requires frequent tissue assessments for treatment guidance and resistance monitoring.
• Advanced analyses, including drug screens and patient-derived xenografts, necessitate larger tissue sample volumes.
• The relationship between serial biopsies, tissue yield, and complication rates remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of obtaining multiple tissue cores during focal liver biopsies on tissue yield and complication rates.
• To compare outcomes between research biopsies requiring numerous cores and standard biopsies for clinical management.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 199 focal liver biopsies for research protocols (research biopsy group).
• Comparison with 1,522 consecutive standard biopsies for clinical management.
• Assessment of tissue cores harvested and complication rates (major and minor).

Main Results:

• Research biopsy group: 1,100 cores (avg. 5.5/procedure) yielded valuable tissue.
• Complication rates: 0.5% major and 1.0% minor in the research group.
• Complication rates were not statistically different between research and standard biopsy groups (1.4% major, 0.2% minor for standard).

Conclusions:

• Obtaining extra tissue cores during focal liver biopsies is safe.
• This method significantly increases tissue yield for experimental testing without raising complication rates.
• Supports the feasibility of extensive tissue sampling for precision oncology research.