Diagnosis of Chordoma
Treating chordomas can involve extensive surgery, so your doctor will be sure to have a definite diagnosis before planning your individualized treatment.

You will get magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) scans that will help your doctor determine if any cancer has spread to other parts of the body. You may need to have a needle biopsy, during which your doctor will use a needle to gather a small sample of the tumor for biopsy in order to confirm the diagnosis.

Because the needle biopsy procedure can cause cells of the tumor to spread along the path of the biopsy needle and lead to the cancer spreading, your surgery team will be prepared to remove the tumor and the entire path of the biopsy needle promptly if the pathologist confirms the diagnosis of chordoma.