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Digital and Computational Imaging in Pathology

  • Hot Topic
  • Published:
Current Pathobiology Reports

Abstract

Purpose of Review

The digitization of pathology departments is underway, especially in larger institutions. The benefits are similar to those enjoyed by our radiologic colleagues, namely, efficient flow, intradepartmental communication, integration of clinical and laboratory findings with images, and the ability to consult with distant colleagues, all in real time. Meanwhile, there is an explosion of new imaging technology that allows us to go beyond traditional resolution limits and add visual overlays based upon molecular species and molecular interaction data. The purpose of this “hot topics” essay is to address and clarify these issues.

Recent Findings

New and emerging imaging modalities involve the transduction of spectral information into visual patterns, where the spectra may be derived from processes such as proton spin, Raman scatter, mass/charge ratios, and other physics-based probes rather than visible, fluorescent, and near infrared light. These collectively comprise computational imaging. Additionally, the massive data sets themselves require massive computation. Approaches to this challenge are presented as well.

Summary

This article explores the basic physical principles behind a number of the new technologies as examples of our current armamentarium as well as the methods used to analyze the resulting data in the context of a digitized pathology laboratory.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Biophysical Pathology, Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School, 185 South Orange Ave., Newark, NJ, 07103, USA

    Stanley Cohen

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  1. Stanley Cohen
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Correspondence to Stanley Cohen.

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The author declares that he has no conflict of interest.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the author.

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Cohen, S. Digital and Computational Imaging in Pathology. Curr Pathobiol Rep 5, 93–99 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40139-017-0129-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40139-017-0129-7

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