Dr. Anita Borges at her best! I was glued to her hour-long talk—and could hardly take my eyes off her histopathology and IHC slides—as she explained in her inimitable style how pathology is rapidly evolving. For over 150 years, histopathology—focused on organs, tissues, and cells held sway in pathology. But over the last two decades, powerful new technologies are forcing us to revise our concepts: from cell-based disease to gene-based disease. How chromosomal deletions, translocations, and mutations are driving the growth of cancer cells and why we ought to learn these molecular pathways if we want our patients with cancers to live longer—and better. What impressed me most was a beautiful balance in her talk: her cautious respect for the old and a guarded fascination for the new. If we continue to hang on to cytology—a specialty she argues is on its way out—and do not bring molecular and genetic testing in our labs, we might deprive our patients of the spectacular advances that are influencing the way precision medicine is bringing new hope to cancer patients these days.
Here is a link to her presentation, aptly titled “Surgical Pathology in Kalyug”: