[Histonet] Re: Review of outside Path

[Robert Richmond]

Dr. Richard Cartun in Hartford CT asks:

>>For those of you working in a hospital pathology laboratory, do you have a policy requiring review of outside pathology slides from patients diagnosed with cancer before that patient has surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy at your institution?  If so, is it a hospital or departmental policy?<<

Academic institutions do this, but I have never seen this done in
private hospitals (maybe 50 of them), most of which do not even have a
procedure for accessioning and reporting outside slides. I think such
review should be a regulatory requirement, though it would be a
burdensome one. At the very least, surgical pathology reports should
be reviewed, particularly since the surgeon's office usually has them
and can fax them. - I've seen too many errors made because this review
wasn't done. - Recent advances in telepathology should make such
review a lot more practical.

Bob Richmond
Samurai Pathologist
Knoxville TN