“How long do biopsy pathology reports take?”
My son will have a skin biopsy next week. How long do biopsy pathology reports take?
7 Answers
A skin biopsy report takes 24 to 48 hours. However, if there are additional studies that needs to be done because of atypical cells, it could take a week. Thank you.
The length of time to obtain a biopsy report on a tissue specimen varies greatly. It first depends upon what pathology service is evaluating it, such as whether it is a hospital pathology department or if it is sent out to a reference pathology department. The evaluation of any tissue also depends upon what methods are going to be required for a specimen, such as standard tissue staining, special staining, electron microscopy or specific cell marker studies. Typically a skin biopsy result should be available within one to two weeks.
It depends on the biopsy and specimen type. Usually small biopsies are rush specimens and are processed (grossed and put in machines to prepare them to embed in wax) the same day they are received in the pathology lab. The following day, slides are prepared and the pathologist renders a diagnosis if possible. Sometimes, special stains and special studies are needed and this results in holding the diagnosis until the results of the special stains/studies come back and that can take another week sometimes. Usually pathology tries to get the results back ASAP because the doctor needs to know so that they can notify the patient. The only exception is if it’s a very rare condition that no one has seen before and then it’s best to send the entire case to an expert pathologist (for example at Memorial Sloan Kettering or MD Anderson if it’s a rare cancer case). And also, usually skin biopsies are read by specialists called dermatopatholgists. regular pathologists can read skin specimens but if it’s a difficult case then we walk the case over to dermatolopatholgy. I was trained at NY Hospital-Cornell Medical Center and that was my experience.
Sandra L. Aponte
Pathologist
Depends. 2 to 7 days.
5 business days...
Results on a biopsy can take up to 5 business days to report. If additional studies are needed, it may be longer.
The biopsy report is usually available within one week. Sometimes earlier and once in while it will take longer for a difficult case that requires consultation with other pathologists or requires special stains and additional procedures.
