Prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN) is a term used in pathology that requires a pathologist to look at a prostate puncture biopsy sample under a microscope to make a diagnosis.
PIN is classified as high-grade or low-grade based on cell morphology:
- Low-grade PIN is unlikely to develop into prostate cancer. If the intraepithelial tumor is hypofractionated, a repeat biopsy in the short term is not necessary, as long as regular PSA monitoring is observed.
- The likelihood of high-grade PIN developing into prostate cancer is high. If the intraepithelial tumor is high grade, repeat puncture is needed to confirm the diagnosis of prostate cancer.
Thus, intraepithelial neoplasia is not prostate cancer, but is considered a precancerous lesion.
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