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Launch Digital Edition

Webinars and Sponsored Roundtables — Register Now

Thursday, May 28, 2026, 1:00–2:00 PM ET
This session is designed to improve understanding and application of recent updates to synoptic pathology reporting protocols such as the latest Reporting Template for Reporting Results of Biomarker Testing of Specimens from Patients with Carcinoma of the Breast. These changes reflect evolving clinical guidelines that directly influence diagnostic accuracy and treatment selection in breast cancer care.

Webinar presenters Thaer Khoury, MD, FCAP, Chair, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Cente, and Colin Murphy,  CEO of mTuitive.

Moderated by: Bob McGonnagle, Publisher, CAP TODAY

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Wednesday, June 24, 2026, 12:00–1:00 PM ET
Hear an expert discuss the expanded clinical utility of HER2 IHC scoring in metastatic breast cancer and its impact on your practice

Webinar presenters Michelle Shiller, DO, AP, CP, MGP, FACP, Baylor University Medical Center.

Moderated by: Bob McGonnagle, Publisher, CAP TODAY

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Subspecialties

Interactive Product Guides

CAP TODAY

Clinical pathology selected abstracts

February 2020—SARS-CoV-2 is transmitted through respiratory droplets, close person-to-person contact, and infected surfaces. Those with COVID-19 often present with fever and respiratory symptoms, and diagnosis relies on detecting the virus through specimens from the upper and lower respiratory tract. However, an increasing number of patients are exhibiting such gastrointestinal symptoms as diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. A growing number of studies are reporting the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in stool samples and anal swabs, generating interest in research focused on a fecal-oral route of transmission. The authors conducted a study to assess the clinical relevance of testing stool samples and anal swabs for SARS-CoV-2 and to provide a critical overview of literature addressing possible fecal-oral transmission.

Anatomic pathology selected abstracts

February 2021—SARS-CoV-2 primarily causes pulmonary injury, but it has been implicated in hepatic injury through the use of serum markers and histologic evaluation. The histologic pattern of injury has not been completely described, and studies quantifying viral load in the liver are lacking. The authors conducted a study in which they reported the clinical and histologic findings related to the liver in 40 patients who died of complications of COVID-19. For the study, they subjected a subset of liver tissue blocks to polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for viral RNA. Peak levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were elevated, with a median ALT peak of 68 U/L (normal up to 46 U/L) and median AST peak of 102 U/L (normal up to 37 U/L). Macrovesicular steatosis was the most common finding, involving 30 (75 percent) patients.

Molecular pathology selected abstracts

February 2021—Beta-thalassemia and sickle cell disease are common hereditary conditions that can have life-threatening complications. Both diseases are caused by genetic alterations affecting the beta subunit of hemoglobin. Mutations that reduce or prevent the synthesis of the beta-globin protein cause beta-thalassemia, a disease characterized by inadequate red blood cell production and, therefore, anemia. In contrast, sickle cell anemia results from a specific point mutation in the beta-globin gene that causes the resulting protein to polymerize. These protein polymers form rigid fibers that affect the stability of the red blood cell and cause its characteristic sickling deformity. Destruction of the aberrant red blood cells leads to anemia, and the sickled cells can also cause painful vaso-occlusive episodes and tissue damage.

Q&A column

Q.
 Can toxicology testing be performed on a person who has been deceased for two years? Read answer.
Q. Is there a standardized procedure for performing platelet estimates that incorporates the dilution effect for low hemoglobin in anemic patients? The formula I found for platelet estimation works well with low hemoglobin levels but not with levels greater than 13 g/dL. Read answer.

Newsbytes

Feburary 2021—Laboratories involved in requests for proposal for total lab automation systems may want to consider the words of wisdom of Francis of Assisi: “For it is in giving that we receive.”

Put It on the Board

February 2021—The FDA has issued an EUA for Siemens Healthineers’ IL-6 assay to measure the presence of interleukin-6 in human serum or plasma.

FDA authorizes OTC at-home test for COVID-19

January 2021—The FDA issued an emergency use authorization for the first over-the-counter, at-home diagnostic test for COVID-19. The Ellume COVID-19 Home Test is a rapid, lateral flow antigen test that detects fragments of proteins of the SARS-CoV-2 virus using a mid-turbinate nasal swab sample from any person two years of age or older. The Ellume home test correctly identified 96 percent of positive samples and 100 percent of negative samples in people who had symptoms. In people without symptoms, the test correctly identified 91 percent of positive samples and 96 percent of negative samples. The home test uses an analyzer that connects with a software application on a smartphone to help users perform the test and interpret results. Results are delivered in as little as 20 minutes via a person’s smartphone. “By authorizing a test for over-the-counter use, the FDA allows it to be sold in places like drug stores, where a patient can buy it, swab their nose, run the test, and find out their results in as little as 20 minutes,” FDA commissioner Stephen M. Hahn, MD, said in a statement released by the agency. “As we continue to authorize additional tests for home use, we are helping expand Americans’ access to testing, reducing the burden on laboratories and test supplies, and giving Americans more testing options from the comfort and safety of their own homes.”

COVID-19, flu combo test for home-collected samples

January 2021—The FDA authorized the first diagnostic test for at-home collection of patient samples to detect COVID-19 and influenza A and B. Quest Diagnostics’ RC COVID-19 +Flu RT-PCR Test for prescription use was authorized with Quest’s Self-Collection Kit for COVID-19 +Flu for individuals who are suspected of respiratory viral infection consistent with COVID-19 when home collection is determined to be appropriate by an individual’s health care provider.

GenMark ePlex RP2 panel receives EUA

January 2021—GenMark Diagnostics received FDA emergency use authorization for its ePlex Respiratory Pathogen Panel 2. The test provides results in less than two hours for more than 20 viruses and bacteria that cause respiratory infections, including COVID-19, flu, bronchitis, and the common cold.

Randox multiplex controls for respiratory disease

January 2021—Randox Laboratories has unveiled its Qnostics Multiplex Respiratory Pathogen Controls for respiratory diseases, including for SARS-CoV-2, influenza A and B, and respiratory syncytial virus. The RTX controls are used to monitor the full testing process, from extraction to amplification and detection, and are compatible with a majority of commercial and in-house assays.

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