Diagnostic Immunohistochemistry
Options
Email
Print
Twitter Facebook MySpace
Delicous Stumble Digg
More...

Diagnostic Immunohistochemistry

April 2012 marks the beginning of the Partnership’s second five-year mandate and the next phase of implementing Canada’s national cancer strategy. The priorities and initiatives for the next five years are outlined in our 2012-2017 strategic plan, Sustaining Action Toward a Shared Vision. Our website will soon be updated to reflect the activities supporting the strategic plan. The information below reflects the priorities and accomplishments of our work between 2007 and 2012.

Ensuring consistency in reporting to determine the best treatment and care options

Correct diagnosis of several kinds of cancer depends on immunohistochemistry (IHC) testing — a highly complex multi-stage test that examines abnormal, possibly cancerous cells. To support consistency in IHC diagnostic pathology reporting, which helps determine the best treatment and care options, the Partnership has undertaken a project in conjunction with the Canadian Association of Pathologists.

Two classes of IHC tests are the focus of this project as it moves toward systematic improvements in quality and patient safety. Pathologists use Class I IHC tests to produce correct and more definitive cancer diagnoses. Class II tests are used to report the results of prognostic and predictive markers in cancer. This information determines cancer type and is crucial in determining the most appropriate treatment.

Progress to date

  • Checklists were developed by a subcommittee of the Canadian Association of Pathologists and disseminated in December 2010 by the Partnership for Class I and Class II IHC tests to ensure that IHC testing is complete and consistent. This, in turn, will inform diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
  • An external laboratory quality-control tool was initiated to provide a mechanism to systematically monitor and improve proficiency in IHC testing across Canada. Using a web-based platform, participating pathologists can submit their interpretation of relevant pathology slides and receive anonymous feedback on how their assessment compares with the documented diagnosis. This program builds on ongoing work in quality control by the Canadian pathology community.
  • Ongoing educational outreach to pathologists and technologists, including regional workshops, is supporting uptake of the new reporting checklists and promotion of the online quality control tool.