Pathology is the branch of medicine that deals with the causes and development of diseases. It is the study of what causes a disease and how the disease progresses. Pathology is important in the study of diseases.
Pathology is the branch of medicine concerned with disease study, primarily through examining tissue, including histology, cytology, and molecular biology. The disease concept is often a crucial part of the diagnosis process in a pathology report.
Pathologists are physicians who collect and examine tissue and other bodily fluids, such as blood and urine, during studying and diagnosing disease. They provide a definitive diagnosis of the disease by examining cells and tissue under a microscope and performing biochemical tests.
Pathologists are also concerned with the treatment of disease, partly in the role of advising on treatment options. In many cases, the final report may include some measure of the disease’s possible outcome and treatment methods.
Pathology is used for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. There are a lot of pathological clinics, and you can find one by just looking up “best pathology lab near me” or “pathological labs near me” on any search engine. This article talks about different branches of pathology.
What Are the Main Types of Pathology?
Anatomic Pathology
Anatomic pathology is the study of disease involving the structure of the body. The anatomic pathologist is concerned with diagnosing disease and investigating causes, mechanisms, and sites of the disease process. The differences in the types of pathology depend on the type of disease or the type of organ affected by the disease.
Forensic Pathology
Forensics plays a role in forensic medicine and tests tissues and fluids to determine their suitability for transplantation. Forensic pathologists are doctors trained to determine the cause of death in suspicious or unusual cases.
A forensic pathologist will have completed a doctorate in forensic pathology, a specific type of pathology that requires a doctor to have completed a pathology residency and certification:
Cytopathology
Cytopathology is a medical specialty that uses a microscope to assess a patient’s cells and tissues. In cytopathology, a medical and/or surgical biopsy is taken, a process that involves the removal of tissue and cells from an organ or part of the body, and the tissue is examined under a microscope.
The term cytopathology is often used interchangeably with the term cytology. Cytopathology is a branch of pathology and is typically performed by a pathologist.
Molecular Pathology
Molecular pathology is a subspecialty that focuses on the genomic and proteomic basis of disease and the clinical application of molecular and genomic technologies to diagnose disease.
Molecular pathology is an evolving and dynamic pathology field that bridges the gap between molecular genetics and traditional pathology. While molecular pathologists are experts in molecular diagnostics, they are also trained in applying these diagnostic technologies to the practice of clinical pathology.
Molecular pathology is a major subfield of pathology and a specific area of focus within some medical specialties, including anatomic pathology, clinical pathology, and veterinary pathology. The field of molecular pathology encompasses multiple disciplines, including molecular genetics, molecular biology, molecular cytogenetics, molecular biochemistry, molecular virology, and molecular immunology.
