The relevance of molecular diagnostics in the practice of surgical pathology

Abstract

Molecular diagnostics is the application of molecular biology techniques and the knowledge of the molecular basis of diseases for diagnosis, prognostication or decision on therapeutic interventions. When the analyzed samples are tissues generated by the practice of traditional surgical pathology, the term molecular surgical pathology (or molecular histopathology) applies. To illustrate the diagnostic approaches in the area of molecular histopathology, this article provides a succinct review of molecular surgical pathology, paying special attention to the specialty fields of sarcomas and lymphomas, and briefly discussing the emerging area of personalized/predictive medicine. Finally, there is a discussion of how molecular diagnostics is changing the paradigm of traditional surgical pathology, as a result of which pathologists will regain a central role in clinical diagnosis and therapeutic decision-making.