BIOPSY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does biopsy mean? 

• BIOPSY (noun)
  The noun BIOPSY has 1 sense:

1. examination of tissues or liquids from the living body to determine the existence or cause of a disease

  Familiarity information: BIOPSY used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BIOPSY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Examination of tissues or liquids from the living body to determine the existence or cause of a disease

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("biopsy" is a kind of...):

diagnostic assay; diagnostic test (an assay conducted for diagnostic purposes)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "biopsy"):

blood test (a serologic analysis of a sample of blood)

chorionic villus biopsy; chorionic villus sampling (a prenatal test to detect birth defects at an early stage of pregnancy; tissue from the chorionic villi is assayed)

needle biopsy (biopsy of deep tissue that is obtained through a hollow needle)

 Context examples 

The classification is based on axillary lymph node dissection with or without sentinel lymph node biopsy.

(Breast Cancer Pathologic Regional Lymph Nodes TNM Finding v7, NCI Thesaurus)

TNM clinical findings are based on information obtained prior to the first definitive treatment through physical examination, diagnostic imaging, endoscopy, biopsy or laboratory testing.

(Breast Cancer Clinical TNM Finding v6, NCI Thesaurus)

A biopsy may be needed to tell the difference between the abnormal tissue and cancer.

(Breast Sclerosing Adenosis, NCI Dictionary)

A bronchial brush biopsy is used to find cancer and changes in cells that may lead to cancer.

(Bronchial brush biopsy, NCI Dictionary)

An instrument designed to facilitate inspection of the trachea and bronchi to carry out diagnostic (taking specimens for culture and biopsy) or therapeutic (removing a foreign object) maneuvers.

(Bronchoscope, NCI Thesaurus)

Doctors diagnose brain tumors by doing a neurologic exam and tests including an MRI, CT scan, and biopsy.

(Brain Cancer, NIH: National Cancer Institute)

A biopsy involving the removal of a core tissue containing bone spicules and hematopoietic elements embedded in the marrow stroma.

(Bone marrow biopsy, NCI Thesaurus)

The anatomic site targeted for a biopsy procedure.

(Biopsy Site, NCI Thesaurus)

A specimen obtained by biopsy, which is a process of removing tissue from living patients for diagnostic examination.

(Biopsy specimen, NCI Thesaurus)

Researchers then took skin biopsies from two groups of mice—one group that had been colonized by S. epidermidis and another that had not.

(Scientists find microbes on the skin of mice promote tissue healing, immunity, National Institutes of Health)