Immunopathology

The Immunopathology Laboratory in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine provides multiple services within the hospital and to our colleagues outside the hospital to characterize leukemias and lymphomas. The laboratory employs the latest technologies, which often enable test results to be produced in hours rather than days. These services can be useful for refining therapy and advancing precision medicine.

Clinical services include:

• Flow cytometric analysis for patients with suspected leukemias and lymphomas. Our specialty-trained pathologists perform flow cytometry on approximately 6,000 cases each year. Our center is one of the few able to perform flow cytometry onsite. This service is available to both staff within the hospital as well as outside physicians seeking a consultation.
• Bone marrow morphology on aspirates and peripheral blood smears, including MPO and NSC staining.
• Immunohistochemistry, featuring testing with a menu of nearly 300 antibodies. Our internal core facility frequently performs this service for samples from our Surgical Pathology division. This service is also available to outside physicians seeking a consultation.
• Cytogenetics (an extension of immunohistochemistry), useful for answering questions about prognosis.
• Assays to stratify patients based on a genetic fingerprint that could be utilized to confirm a diagnosis and predict prognosis, define disease evolution, and identify therapeutic targets.

The laboratory also supports research by generating immunopathology tools that allow other investigators to move their projects forward, especially genomic studies. These tools include state-of-the-art biobanking and molecular profiling. The team is working on a model to implant tumors in mice to predict what will happen in patients — information which can be used to direct clinical trials. Weill Cornell immunopathologists also educate pathology residents and fellows participating in our ACGME-approved Hematopathology Fellowship program.