Which procedure samples tissue from a suspicious lesion for microscopic analysis?

• A. Skin Biopsy
• B. Sigmoidoscopy
• C. Technetium Tc-99m
• D. Thoracoscopy

Answer: (A)

To diagnose a suspicious lesion by examining its cells, you need a tissue sample obtained through a biopsy. When the lesion is on the skin, a skin biopsy specifically removes skin tissue for histology, allowing a pathologist to look at cellular details under a microscope and determine the nature of the lesion—benign, premalignant, or malignant, and to identify inflammatory or infectious processes.

Other options aren’t about taking a tissue sample from a skin lesion. A sigmoidoscopy examines the lower colon and may biopsy that mucosa, not skin. Technetium Tc-99m is a radioactive tracer used for imaging, not for obtaining tissue. Thoracoscopy accesses the chest cavity to biopsy lung or pleural tissue, not a skin lesion.