Biopsy of Lesions

Obtaining A Small Piece of Tissue to Establish A Diagnosis and Help with Treatment of an Oral Lesion.

Biopsies are used to establish a diagnosis for oral tissue that does not appear normal (a lesion). The biopsy can be incisional where only a portion of the lesion is removed or excisional where the entire lesion is removed. The tissue is submitted to the University of Washington Oral Pathology Laboratory for histologic analysis using a microscope. By analyzing the tissue in this way, an oral pathologist can determine what cells are present, if they appear normal and what the most likely diagnosis for the lesion is. This will guide the surgeon on how to treat the area as well as the likelihood for recurrence if the lesion is removed.

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