You have received a pathology report — or been told that your results are ready — but instead of a clear diagnosis, your report contains a note saying that results are pending, that additional testing is required, or that the case has been sent for further evaluation. This can be frustrating and unsettling, especially when …
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If you have had a Pap test, a fine needle aspiration, or a procedure to sample fluid from around your lungs or in your abdomen, the report you received was likely a cytology report. Cytology reports are different from the tissue-based pathology reports most people are familiar with — they are based on the examination …
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If you have been diagnosed with cancer, your pathology report will almost certainly include a stage. Staging is how doctors describe how far a cancer has grown and whether it has spread beyond where it started. The most widely used staging system in the world is called TNM. Understanding what TNM means — and how …
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When you receive a pathology report, many of the findings in it apply to concepts that go beyond any single diagnosis. Staging, grading, margins, testing methods, and report structure are the same whether you have a breast cancer diagnosis, a colon cancer diagnosis, or something else entirely. The articles in this section explain those concepts …
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If your blood test or bone marrow report mentions BCR::ABL1 or the Philadelphia chromosome, these refer to the same genetic change — a mistake in the DNA of a blood-forming cell that causes it to produce a new, abnormal protein. That protein drives the uncontrolled growth of white blood cells seen in chronic myeloid leukemia …
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If your pathology report or molecular test results mention a RAS mutation — most commonly NRAS, HRAS, or KRAS — this refers to a change in one of three closely related genes that help control how thyroid cells grow and divide. RAS mutations are among the most common molecular findings in thyroid cancer and in …
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If your pathology report or molecular test results mention a BRAF mutation — most commonly written as BRAF V600E — this refers to a specific change in the BRAF gene found in a large proportion of thyroid cancers. BRAF testing is now a routine part of the molecular workup for thyroid cancer, and the result …
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If your pathology report or genetic test results mention BRCA1 or BRCA2, these refer to two genes that play a critical role in repairing damaged DNA. In ovarian cancer, BRCA testing is one of the most important molecular tests performed — not just because a mutation in either gene helps predict how the cancer will …
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If your pathology or molecular report mentions p53, it refers to the result of a special stain or genetic test that looks at a protein — and the gene that makes it — that plays a central role in how cells control their own growth and repair their DNA. In endometrial cancer, testing for p53 …
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Genetic testing is becoming an increasingly common part of cancer care. However, it exists in two very different forms that are often confused — and this confusion is important because the results can have very different implications. One type of genetic test looks at the DNA of the cancer cells themselves, looking for changes that …
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