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The Pathology Program is directed at improving or building pathology services in low and middle income countries. Projects are intended to provide education and training to pathologists in these countries.
Educational and Training Workshops for Pathologists in sub-Saharan Africa
A series of workshops entitled, “What Can We Learn from Africa?” have been held in Siena, Italy, Paris, France, Mombasa, Kenya, Arusha, Tanzania and most recently in Dakar, Senegal. Participants in these workshops have included pathologists and clinicians from sub-Saharan East and West African countries. A typical meeting agenda is comprised of didactic lectures provided by an international faculty, case-study presentations by selected participants for wider discussion among all participants and faculty, and pre and post tests are given to participants to assess knowledge gained during the workshops.
Central Pathology Review
Central Pathology Review of Childhood Brain Tumors in Brazil
In 2013, INCTR Brazil and TUCCA began central review of the pathologic diagnoses of brain tumors made by institutions throughout the country. To date, 526 cases have been reviewed. An important initial finding was that there was lack of concordance in 62% of the cases. This meant that there was a negative impact on appropriate treatment and, consequently, outcome on 40% of the discordant cases. It is anticipated that the central review will be expanded to other institutions and that molecular testing will be introduced in prospective clinical trials. Lastly, learning and training programs will be defined based on the new WHO classification of central nervous system tumors. For more information about this project, contact: inctr@inctrbrasil.org.
Central Pathology Review of Diagnoses Made on Patients Treated According to INCTR’s Treatment Protocol for Burkitt Lymphoma in Africa
A team of pathologists who are part of INCTR’s Pathology Program performed a central pathology review for patients entered on the INCTR study, “The Treatment and Characterization of Burkitt Lymphoma in Africa”. This review was done by a determination of the concordance between the original histopathology diagnosis and the consensus diagnosis made by this expert panel of pathologists. The reviews were performed on-site and provided an opportunity for the team to assess and evaluate diagnostic services and resources. The strategy that emerged for the years subsequent to this review was to formulate for the coming years will be to formulate and implement standards for diagnosis and classification of lymphomas and to introduce immunohistochemistry using a simple, but effective panel of monoclonal antibodies (reagents) for more accurate diagnosis of hematologic malignancies.
- iPath – Telepathology
iPath
iPath is a web based program developed at the University of Basel for the purposes of pathology training, histopathology review and consultation.
AMCC, INCTR’s French Branch provides support via iPath to assist in the diagnosis of malignancies. This support initially began with the diagnosis of hematologic malignancies, but has recently been expanded to include solid tumors. Since 2010, more than 200 cases were registered in the Francophone Africa Group within iPath. These cases were from both adults and children and 68% of these cases were hematologic malignancies. In addition, iPath was used to characterize the cytology of lymphoproliferative disorders in Dakar, Senegal at the University Hospital Aristide Le Dantec and Cheick Anta Diop University in the context of a PhD thesis – 63 cases were characterized. AMCC will be assisting with diagnostic support in a project for the treatment of diffuse large B cell lymphomas in adults at the University Hospital of Dakar in collaboration with the University Hospital of Nancy, France and the National Institute of Cancer of France (INCa). For more information contact: contact@amcc-cancer.org.
Introduction of Immunohistochemistry at St Mary’s Hospital Lacor, Gulu, Uganda
The pathologists and their technicians at St Mary’s Hospital had been previously trained in the techniques required to perform immunohistochemistry (IHC) by several Italian Universities. In 2016, INCTR and its partners, OFID and INCTR UK Challenge Fund provided the necessary reagents and equipment to St Mary’s Hospital in order to improve the diagnosis of lymphomas made by the hospital as recommended by the pathologists who conducted the central pathology review for the INCTR Burkitt Lymphoma treatment protocol.
For general information about the Pathology Program, contact info@inctr.be.
