Clinically significant prostate cancer detected by systematic biopsy in patients with MRI lesions

To characterise the prevalence and distribution of biopsy cores found to be higher grade on systematic biopsy compared to targeted biopsy in patients with prostate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) lesions.

We retrospectively identified patients with a pre-biopsy MRI and a Prostate Imaging-Reporting and Data System score ≥3 lesion, who underwent combined systematic and targeted biopsy between 2021 and 2024. Transrectal and transperineal approaches with either software-based or cognitive fusion techniques were used. We compared the highest Gleason grade detected by systematic vs targeted biopsy for each patient. Clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa) was defined as Gleason Grade Group ≥2. For those with higher-grade csPCa detected on systematic compared to targeted biopsy, we correlated the pathological location of the higher-grade systematic core to the corresponding MRI region(s) of interest (ROI). Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine factors associated with higher-grade csPCa found on systematic biopsy.

Our final cohort comprised 481 patients. Detection of higher-grade csPCa on systematic biopsy outside of the MRI ROI occurred in 6.4% of all cases. Systematic biopsy detected higher-grade csPCa contralateral to the MRI ROI in only 1.5% of all cases. There were no identifiable factors on multivariable analysis associated with detection of higher-grade csPCa on systematic biopsy outside of the ROI.

There exists a small percentage of patients with occult csPCa detected only on systematic biopsy outside of the MRI ROI, most of which is ipsilateral to the target. Systematic biopsy also increased detection of low-grade cancer overall. An approach of systematic biopsy ipsilateral to MRI lesions should increase csPCa detection while reducing overdiagnosis of low-grade disease.