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Launch Digital Edition

Webinars and Sponsored Roundtables — Register Now

Tuesday, July 21, 2026, 11:00-11:30 AM CT

Learning Objectives:
  • Explain how transparency and manufacturer partnerships improve quality, consistency, and decision-making confidence in specimen management.
  • Evaluate blood collection tubes beyond cost and commodity assumptions, incorporating clinical impact and risk into decision-making.
  • Assess the potential risk points when using a blood collection device that has not been cleared for a specific purpose.

Roundtable presenters Nick Fingland, PhD, PMP, Senior Director, R&D Operations and Science, BD, and Chris Farnsworth, PhD, D(ABCC), Section Head of Clinical Chemistry, Professor of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine.

Moderated by: Bob McGonnagle, Publisher, CAP TODAY

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Wednesday, July 29, 2026, 1:00-2:00 PM ET
Learn about digital pathology technology that is future-ready, yet practical for today’s
laboratory needs.

Webinar presenters Scott Hammond, Senior Systems Consultant, Digital Pathology Division, Wexner Medical Center, Department of Pathology, and Ursula Hofer, Imaging Technologist, Pathology Digital Imaging Lab, Wexner Medical Center, Department of Pathology, and Sandra Banky, PA(ASCP), Director of Operations, Wexner Medical Center, Department of Pathology.

Moderated by: Bob McGonnagle, Publisher, CAP TODAY

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Subspecialties

Interactive Product Guides

Q&A column

Q&A column, 3/18

March 2018—Our pathology group has an unusual case of residual squamous cell carcinoma of the lung in a lobectomy specimen after chemotherapy. The lung shows a hilar scar (1.7 cm) involving the lung parenchyma and the peribronchial adipose tissue. In the scar there is residual carcinoma (0.4 cm) that focally is involving the peribronchiolar adipose tissue around the lobar bronchus. The focus is located at 0.3 cm of the final surgical resection margin of the bronchus. Because the tumor involves peribronchiolar adipose tissue, is it considered outside the lung (extension outside the lung)? Since the tumor is in the mediastinal fat around the bronchi and had to invade the viscera pleura to invade the peribronchial adipose tissue, would the tumor stage be ypT2a? Or T3 since it is invading part of the mediastinal fat? Or should it be pT1?

Q&A column, 2/18

February 2018—I come from a core (hematology/chemistry) background, and I would like practical, how-to guidance in developing an effective QC strategy for HIV viral load testing. What performance characteristics do you verify? How many and what type of samples do you use? What are the chosen acceptable thresholds? Do you use L-J charts? If so, what do you plot, what control rules do you select, and how do you select them?

Q&A column, 1/18

January 2018—We are in the process of validating the Stago STA Compact Max and Stago STA R Max with cap piercing. The company is stating that the open and closed modes follow the same testing pathway and therefore validation between modes is not necessary. Is this correct? Is PHI (phosphohexose isomerase), also known as GPI (glucose phosphate isomerase), mainly responsible for metastasis and circulating tumor cells?

Q&A column, 12/17

December 2017—Is a tumor embolus in the capsule of the lymph nodes considered metastasis? Does the lung, like the lymph nodes of the breast, have the concept of isolated tumor cells? As the staging rule is “when in doubt, understage,” would the case therefore be pT2, N0?

Q&A column, 11/17

November 2017—A laboratory owns chemistry analyzers from company X. Company X recommends that its customers use company X’s calibration material to perform their linearity studies, starting with the highest concentration and using the chemistry analyzer’s autodilution feature to provide a total of four measurable concentrations and a final zero point. Does this protocol fulfill CAP checklist requirements?

Q&A column, 10/17

October 2017—Our doctors request strep group A culture on throat specimens that are negative for rapid strep group A. On culture workup, if we have beta-hemolytic strep, we perform latex grouping only for group A strep; we report negative for GAS if latex is negative and positive if latex is positive. I think we should confirm all GAS with pyrrolidonyl arylamidase (PYR), and group and report other non-GAS. What do you think?

Q&A column, 9/17

September 2017— I received a sample with very high hemoglobin grossly. When I ran the sample on the Cell-Dyn Ruby, it was unable to calculate the parameters related to Hgb. I diluted the EDTA blood and ran the test again. In this scenario, should I multiply all the indices and Hgb-related parameters with the dilution factor? Which parameters should I multiply with the dilution factor?

Q&A column, 8/17

August 2017—Due to an ever-changing workforce, many new and inexperienced technologists are working in the microbiology lab and appear to be having difficulty interpreting cultures and troubleshooting when an organism in question may not be significant. As an example, a scant growth of Micrococcus was isolated and reported from a cerebrospinal fluid culture; it was not seen in the Gram stain and was negative for leukocytes. Contaminants had been noted on some of the media plates at this time as well, but many of these inexperienced technologists do not have the confidence to ignore obvious contaminants or suggest the possibility of contamination. Is there some guidance or troubleshooting tools for these situations?

Q&A column, 7/17

July 2017—A laboratory is considering the implementation of a laboratory test for the diagnosis of Zika virus infection. This test is currently labeled as a test under the issuance of an Emergency Use Authorization. What specific regulations regarding the use of this test, quality control, and proficiency testing apply when performing this test on patient specimens?

Q&A column, 6/17

June 2017—Our analyzer reported nucleated red blood cells of six, with no cellular interference flag. The technologist missed that the automated NRBC was six. When he performed the manual differential, he noted more than five NRBCs and performed a corrected count and certified it. Is it acceptable to report out the automated white blood cell value as well as the corrected WBC?

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