The African Society for Laboratory Medicine (ASLM) presented a far-reaching strategic vision to improve laboratory medicine by 2020 during its inaugural conference held Dec. 1–7 in Cape Town, South Africa. More than 1,100 health professionals from 62 nations—34 from Africa—attended the conference, “Accurate Laboratory Diagnostics: A Pillar of Quality Health Care,” which was sponsored by ASCP, laboratory organizations, and aid and industry partners.   Read more

Today’s consumers have ready access to genetic information with easy-to-order test kits routinely being marketed directly to patients. Some of these services inform individuals of their risk factors for a list of treatable diseases—from glaucoma to Type 2 diabetes to different types of cancer. But even as patients are learning the sometimes intricate details of their DNA, the question arises: Are their doctors equally as informed? Read more

Getting the attention of eighth-grade students in a classroom setting might be a challenge for some but not for Lisa Thrasher, MLT(ASCP)^CM. After completing her year as an ASCP Career Ambassador from 2010 to 2011, she still laughs when recalling how she engaged students during a visit to her son’s eighth-grade class to talk about science. Read more

With its decision on Nov. 30 to review an appellate court’s 2 to 1 ruling upholding patents on the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, the U.S. Supreme could alter the course of molecular pathology in the United States during 2013. Read more