The Daily Scan

chalk tip #8: rotate slide label images

Did you know?  In ImageScope, you can rotate a slide label image by double-clicking on the edge which belongs on top.  When you position the mouse over an edge of the label, it will turn into an up arrow.  Just double-click and the label will be rotated.  ImageScope will remember this rotation since labels at a given site are usually oriented the same way.  Try it!

Congratulations to Pathoindia for 10 years online!

We just wanted to congratulate Pathoindia, Dr. John Marshall Johnson's portal for Indian pathologists, which recently celebrated its 10-year anniversary online!  They currently have over 2,000 members. 

It reminds us US-based scientist that Pathology is truly an international field and there is so much great work being done in other countries.  And really the capability to share pathology information over long distances is one of the key drivers for the adoption of Digital Pathology.

Dr. Victor Reuter to be keynote speaker at Pathology Visions

The Pathology Visions conference has announced that Dr. Victor Reuter will be the keynote speaker.

Dr. Reuter is board certified in anatomic and clinical pathology and has practiced surgical pathology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center for the past 25 years. At this leading cancer institute, he is an Attending Pathologist and Vice Chairman of the Department of Pathology. He is Director of the Genitourinary Pathology Research Laboratory, Past President of the Medical Staff, and Director of the Immunohistochemistry Research Core Laboratory. He is a Professor of Pathology at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University of New York.

Dr. Reuter is a recognized expert in the field of Genitourinary Pathology, having served as author of hundreds of peer-reviewed journal publications, multiple book chapters and invited lecturer at national and international conferences. From 1998 to 2003, Dr. Reuter has served as President of the Education Committee of the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology. From 2003, Dr. Reuter joined the Executive Committee of the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology in the capacity of Councilor, Vice President, President-Elect, and most recently President of the Academy. He is a co-investigator in MSKCC’s SPORE and Directors Challenge grants in prostate cancer.

Dr. Reuter adds luster to what is already shaping up as a really great Pathology Visions conference, make your plans to attend!

Dr. Prashant Jani, blogging Oncopathology

Just wanted to point out another Pathologist blogger; Dr. Prashant Jani who blogs about Oncopathology: "recent updates in Oncopathology as well as to evaluate the importance of Pathologists in management of cancer".

His most recent post is Errors in Anatomic Pathology: Extracts of an interview with Dr. Stephen Raab, Professor of Pathology, Vice-Chair for Quality and Director of Anatomic Pathology at the University of Colorado, Denver.

Check it out!

Roche touts Herceptin in some stomach cancers

The San Francisco Chronicle reports Roche touts Herceptin in some stomach cancers:

Herceptin, a leading Genentech breast cancer drug, also prolongs patient survival in certain forms of stomach cancer, Swiss drugmaker Roche said Wednesday as it released limited results from a large trial of Herceptin, which Roche markets outside the United States.

...

Herceptin is one of the Genentech cancer drugs designed to target specific molecules that help tumors grow. The antibody drug inactivates a molecule called HER2, which is found at heightened levels in about 20 percent of breast cancer patients. Herceptin is approved in the United States for those HER2-positive breast cancer patients.

Very interesting...  Presumably that means IHC tests similar to the ones used for breast cancer will be developed to determine whether patients with stomach cancer are expressing Her2, and hence are candidates for treatment with Herceptin.  Another possibly application of digital pathology!

TheScientist: Alzheimer's Pathology circa 1906

WSJ: The Push For Paperless Health Records

The Wall Street Journal has a nice article The Push for Paperless Health Records, an interview with David Brailer, who served as national coordinator for health information technology under the Bush administration.

On the lack of federal spending for health IT during the Bush administration:

“The reason we avoided federal spending on this is once the federal government weighs in and says, ‘We will pay you to do this,’ market forces die. Nobody will ever do it anymore without federal money. The federal government is going to spend the next $65 billion at some point. Why would a doctor pay out of pocket to do this if the federal government has owned the market? I think it completely changes the health IT market to much more of a government-driven marketplace.”

Interesting; this is of course exactly what is happening now under the Obama administration, as part of the overall stimulus package.

On investing in electronic health records after the stimulus:

“It’s kind of hard as an investor to know which company to invest in because everyone has little chunks of the market and no one’s positioned as an aggregator, and I don’t think economic forces are pointing towards aggregation of the market. I do think the one effect it’s definitely had is it’s created a tremendous froth in valuation expectations in electronic record companies that are aimed at doctors that make it almost impossible for investors to make money in the long run in this space. Ironically, the stimulus has, I think, led to a capital risk that’s sitting on top of a capital risk.”

I think one or more companies will emerge as aggregators, that is a business model which is sure to attract some investors.  Regardless they will all have to incorporate pathology information, and hopefully use Aperio's technology to do so!

Interpath - Pathology on the iPhone

Wanted to call your attention to the Interpath viewer for the iPhone.  This software application is available through the Apple AppStore and enabled full-featured viewing of whole-slide images for pathology on an iPhone.  It communicates with Aperio's Spectrum system. 

Here's a demo of the viewer in action:

Interpath for iPhone from IMI on Vimeo.

This is great.  Not only is it a nice solution for many pathologists who wish to view digital slides on a handheld device, but it is a clear demonstration of the power of open architecture.  Aperio publishes the interface specifications for our Spectrum system to enable third-parties like Room 4 to add on to our solutions.  We didn't plan to have an iPhone viewer, but Room 4 saw a need and filled it, and we all benefit.

chalk tip #7: select annotation tools with function keys

Did you know?  In ImageScope, function keys F2 – F7 select annotation drawing tools, so you don’t have to move your mouse up to the toolbar!

There’s a positional correspondence between function keys and toolbar icons:

Makes it easy to draw an annotation, then another, then another… try it!

Webinar: Digital Pathology Solution for IHC - It's All About Workflow

Following up on my previous post, IHC goes digital, you may be interested in a webinar Aperio is conducting called Digital Pathology Solution for IHC - It's All About Workflow.

March Clinical Webinar
Aperio's Digital Pathology Solution for IHC - It's All About Workflow
Wednesday, March 25, 2009 12:00 pm PST, 3:00 pm EST
Presenter: Holger Lange, Ph.D. Product Director, Aperio

In this 45-minute, complimentary webinar, Dr. Lange will demonstrate Aperio's Digital Pathology Solution for IHC (www.aperio.com/ihc).  He will take a look at Aperio’s state-of-the-art digital pathology solution for IHC and follow the work of a pathologist.  Topics covered will include:

• Efficient Clinical Workflow - from glass slides to reports in under 30 minutes.
• All-Digital - Use image analysis tools with a simple click of a button while reading slides on a computer monitor.
• Reports with Access to Whole Slide Images - Clicking on the report image allows access to the whole slide image.

Immunohistochemistry (IHC) has experienced a strong adoption of digital technology.  There is already a reimbursement code for the use of computer assisted technologies and FDA cleared medical devices are available today.

Workflow is key in the clinical arena.  After the digital revolution in radiology, can the digital pathology live up to its expectations as well?  Does going digital provide pathologists and labs with a more efficient workflow, better tools, and improved patient care?  See for yourself.

Please join us... To register for this session, click here.  You may also register by visiting the Aperio Events page (www.aperio.com/pathology-events/webinar_clinical.asp).  You will receive a confirmation email upon registration with a web link that will lead you to the online event.  Simply visit the link at the assigned time.  The session is secure and easy to access.  If you have any questions or would like additional information, please contact the Aperio Events Team at events@aperio.com or 760.539.1193.