Prostate Cancer Gleason Score
What Does the Biopsy Say About Your Prostate Cancer?
When abnormal results are discovered from prostate cancer screen tests, the Digital Rectal Exam and PSA Blood Test, a biopsy may be recommended. The Gleason Score is the rating system assigned to the results of the biopsy. This type of biopsy is normally performed using transrectal ultrasound guidance. The ultrasound allows the physician to take distributed samples from the prostate. Typically twelve separate samples are taken. A pathologist will then examine the tissue samples under a microscope to determine whether or not the prostate contains cancerous tissue. A grade is assigned to the tissue samples. The two most common grades are added together to create the Gleason Score.
Prostate Cancer is classified by the Gleason Score. A Prostate Cancer Gleason Score or Grade helps to determine how aggressively the prostate cancer is likely to behave. The score will help classify the cancer by grading how quickly it it is likely to grow. The score also is a an indicator in how likely it is to spread outside of the prostate gland.
- The Prostate Cancer Gleason Score score ranges from 2 to 10.
- To determine the Gleason score, the pathologist uses a microscope to look at the patterns of cells in the prostate tissue.
- The most common cell pattern is given a grade of 1 (most like normal cells) to 5 (most abnormal).
- If there is a second most common cell pattern, the pathologist gives it a grade of 1 to 5.
- The pathologist adds the two most common grades together to make the Gleason score. If only one pattern is seen, the pathologist counts it twice, e.g. 5 + 5 = 10.
- A high Gleason score (such as 10) means a high-grade prostate tumor.
- High-grade tumors are more likely than low-grade tumors to grow quickly and spread.
How Does the Pathologist Grade the Prostate Cancer Gleason Score?
Gleason Score 1
The cancerous tissue looks very much like normal prostate cells.
Gleason Score 2-4
Some cells do look like normal prostate cells, other cells do not. Patterns of cells in these grades vary.
Gleason Score 5
The cells appear abnormal and do not look like normal prostate cells. Abnormal cells appear to be scattered haphazardly throughout the prostate.
NOTE: The pathologist adds the two most common grades together to make the final Gleason score.
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Remission versus Recurrence?
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