For effective treatment and best outcome for any individual, obtaining accurate initial diagnosis of the cancer type is of paramount importance. Blood tests are routinely done. The kind of imaging modality chosen will depend on the types of signs and symptoms that a person presents with. These may include a mammogram, a CT, an MRI, an ultrasound, a bone scan or a PET-CT scan. Sometimes it may be a combination of these to determine the exact location of the cancer in the body for choosing the best location for a biopsy and for proper cancer staging.
As mentioned, a biopsy involves obtaining a piece of tissue from the tumour to be examined under the microscope. This will give us the most accurate information on the type of cancer that we are dealing with, thus enabling us to choose the most effective treatment.