This is a test where a sample (very small amount of tissue) it taken out of the organ or the lump that your doctor is concerned about.

To do this an ultrasound machine is used to accurately locate the lump or the part of the organ that needs to be tested. The radiology specialist doctor will then inject local anaesthetic into the skin (you will feel the needle prick) and into the tissues underneath to make that small area numb. Then a very fine small needle is inserted into the lump or the part of the organ of concern.

A tiny amount of tissue is aspirated and then prepared. This is usually performed twice or three times. In total, this should take only a few minutes. Then the specimen is sent to the pathology company. The pathology company will then do several tests on the sample to determine what the lump or area of concern is. The results will be sent directly to your treating doctor. The radiology department will give you some pictures of the procedure, which show the specific lump or part of the organ that was sampled (but the pictures are not the results. The results will come from the pathology department.).