Sample to Report

Question 1

Define disease

Answer 1

Pathological condition of a body part, an organ or system characterised by an identifiable group of signs or symptoms

Question 2

Define neoplasia

Answer 2

Abnormal growth, benign or malignant

Question 3

Outline what benign means

Answer 3

Not harmful in effect

Question 4

What does malignant mean

Answer 4

Harmful, very virulent or infectious

Question 5

What is fat necrosis?

Answer 5

necrosis = action upon fat by digestive enzymes.

Lipase releases fatty acids from triglycerides, fatty acids complex with Ca = form soaps - appear as white chalky deposits

Question 6

What is a metastasis?

Answer 6

development of secondary malignant growths at a distance from a primary site of cancer

Question 7

What can histopathologists report regarding a cancer diagnosis?

Answer 7

type of cancer, 
grade, 
stage, 
margins, 
efficacy of treatment

Question 8

When are Reed-Sternberg cell found?

Answer 8

different giant cells found with light microscopy in biopsies from individuals with Hodgkin’s lymphoma

Question 9

Describe what adenocarcinoma is

Answer 9

a malignant tumour formed from glandular structures in epithelial tissue

Question 10

What is Hodgkin’s lymphoma?

Answer 10

cancer of a part of the immune system called the lymph system

The first sign = enlarged lymph nodes

Can spread to nearby lymph nodes, lungs, liver, bone marrow

Question 11

Name a tumour of melanin-forming cells

Answer 11

melanoma

Question 12

How is a cancer staged?

Answer 12

T = tumour 0-4,

N = nodes 0-2,

M = metastases 0 1 X

Question 13

What is a carcinoma?

Answer 13

cancer arising in the epithelial tissue of the skin or of the lining of the internal organs

Question 14

Describe Mohs Surgery

Answer 14

most effective technique for removing basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma

thin layers of cancer-containing skin are progressively removed and examined until only cancer-free tissue remains

Question 15

What receptors are looked for in breast cancer and their related treatment?

Answer 15

ER = receptors for the hormone oestrogen (tamoxifen)

Her2 = receptors for the protein HER2 (Herceptin)

Question 16

What are the general stages of slide preparation?

Answer 16

Fixation of tissue, 
trimming, 
dehydration, 
embedding in cassette, 
blocking, 
microtomy, 
water bath, 
slide, 
mounting, 
stain, 
visualise

Question 17

During fixation what chemical is used and why?

Answer 17

Formalin = stops autolysis, inactivates enzymes, stops bacterial growth, hardens tissue

Question 18

What are tissue samples embedded in?

Answer 18

paraffin wax

Question 19

What does blocking involve?

Answer 19

placing the tissue sample in a metal block, surrounded by set molten paraffin wax and cassette, metal block removed when set

Question 20

How can cytokeratins be used in immunohistochemistry?

Answer 20

family of intracellular fibrous proteins in almost all epithelia

can be used for epithelial differentiation and show tissue-specific distribution = give info about primary site

Question 21

What does molecular pathology explore?

Answer 21

Changes in DNA, RNA and proteins through sequencing

Question 22

What happens when histopathology is time limited?

Answer 22

frozen sections using cryostat, morphology is not as good but results in 10 mins e.g. inter-operative samples

Question 23

What information is included in a histology report?

Answer 23

clinical history, 
sample size, 
tissue type, 
grade, 
cell and receptor type, 
how sample was obtained, 
who has reported