Department of Pathology Faculty Member Explains Pathology Report Procedures for Breast Cancer

Associate Professor of Pathology Baljit Singh, M.D., and his colleague from the NYU Cancer Institute Dr. Deborah Axelrod, a breast surgeon, recently described the team work between pathologists and surgeons during breast cancer diagnosis and treatment in a video interview on the Beet.TV website that is available to the general public. The video is intended to provide information on how surgeons and pathologists work in concert to help women with breast cancer.

Dr. Singh explains the intricate collaboration between the surgeon and the pathologist when examining the characteristics of a tumor and outlines the variables that factor into the pathology report. In particular he explains the importance of analyzing the rim of normal tissue or the “margins” that mark the evidence of healthy tissue around the tumor. These margins indicate whether or not the cancer has been removed completely. Given the importance of the potential for breast conservation after surgery, this overview may be of particular interest to women who would like to understand the options before and after a lumpectomy procedure.

Beet.TV offers its visitors the opportunity to learn about medicine, with a principal focus on women's health issues, through video interviews with prominent physicians from the nation's leading medical institutions. The video with Dr. Singh was also syndicated in the Huffington Post. Dr. Singh recently also participated in the Oncotype DX Virtual Tumor Board web conferences offered by Genomic Health, which provides a forum for discussion of actual patient case studies (focused on tumor characteristics making adjuvant decision-making difficult) and current best practices in diagnosis, treatment, and management of patients with early stage breast cancer.