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New from CAP Press: Inspired by pathology, connected through art

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Anne Ford

September 2016—When Ray Paul was diagnosed with sarcoma in 2011, he wanted to understand his disease. His neighbor was a resident in the radiation department at Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Fla., where Paul was being treated, and that neighbor was happy to introduce him to the pathologist on Paul’s case.

Paul

Paul

An artist and biologist, Paul told the pathologist: “‘I want to see what my tumor looks like. I want to stare my devil in the eye,’” recalls Marilyn M. Bui, MD, PhD, a senior member of the Departments of Anatomic Pathology and Sarcoma, section head of bone and soft tissue pathology, and scientific director of the analytic microscopy core, Moffitt Cancer Center, and a professor and cytopathology fellowship director, University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine.

Dr. Bui invited Paul to view his tumor cells with her through her double-headed microscope and sent him digital images as well. Paul enlarged those images, had them printed directly onto canvas, and painted over them to create striking works of art. “I attacked the images directly with paint, made something beautiful out of a terrible diagnosis, and showed there’s hope and strength in it,” he tells CAP TODAY.

Now the collaboration of Paul and Dr. Bui has inspired an entire book: The Healing Art of Pathology, a collection of artwork and essays derived from or inspired by pathology. Edited by Dr. Bui and Katherine A. Galagan, MD, and published by CAP Press, the volume contains a selection of Paul’s artwork and nearly 60 other pieces by pathologists, patients and their families, and other artists, among them laboratory scientists and technologists.

The book’s editors hope readers will not only enjoy the artistry but also feel a connection. “I wanted to create a book that would connect pathologists to patients, and pathologists to other medical professions,” Dr. Bui explains.

Her desire to do so predated her encounter with Paul. Even before then, as a relatively new member of the CAP Publications Committee, she had been contemplating ideas for volumes that would add new dimension to CAP Press’ usual fare of pathology textbooks.

One of three pieces of art in the book by Ray Paul, titled “My Sarcoma #2.” Acrylic, latex, and enamel on canvas printed with a photographic image of the metastatic sarcoma to his lung. “This piece is my attempt to face my cancer head-on through my artwork. I am throwing all of my paint, energy, and soul into this battle,” he writes.

One of three pieces of art in the book by Ray Paul, titled “My Sarcoma #2.” Acrylic, latex, and enamel on canvas printed with a photographic image of the metastatic sarcoma to his lung. “This piece is my attempt to face my cancer head-on through my artwork. I am throwing all of my paint, energy, and soul into this battle,” he writes.

“I felt we should publish some books that focus on the people behind the microscope, because I know how significant our jobs are for patient care, but we tend to be invisible physicians,” she says. “There is much to be done in terms of making connections to our patients and advocating for our profession, which ultimately means better patient care.” She hopes the inviting and accessible Healing Art book will open the world of pathology to patients and their families through art.

Once the concept for the book had been approved, Dr. Bui, Dr. Galagan (chair of the CAP Publications Committee), and CAP Press staff sought submissions from “whoever allowed us to spread the word,” Dr. Bui says. When all the artwork and essays had come in, the editors realized they now suffered from an embarrassment of riches: With so many high-quality images, the book would be too costly to produce.

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