Researchers conducted a study on breast cancer and found as many as one in four biopsies are incorrectly diagnosed.
An expert panel double checked the pathology results of 240 biopsies.
The panel found the misdiagnosis of some cases involved two types of abnormal, but not yet invasive, cancerous cells.
“Over-diagnosing may subject women to unnecessary surgical procedures, as well as to unnecessary treatment. The flip side of that is that are the cases that are missed. These are women who are told that they do not have cancer and may not get the appropriate follow-up,” said Dr. Natalie Azar, an NBC News medical contributor.
Experts say women should seek a second opinion if they get either diagnosis to make sure they’re getting the correct treatment.