Digital & Computational Pathology - Pathologist, German University Medical Center

A pathologist at a German University Medical Center discusses their experience with digital pathology. They note that their pathology workflow is almost 100% digital, with all slides being scanned and viewed digitally on a computer. The exception to this is cytology specimen and frozen section consultations. The stakeholder initially started with scanning IHC slides before transitioning to complete digital pathology. They use Philips scanners and an image management system from Philips to store the scanned images. The images are stored in three tiers, with the highest tier being an in-house solution for long-term storage. The stakeholder emphasizes the importance of data security and privacy in their decision to use an in-house solution. They also mention the potential of AI in digital pathology, including using AI for IHC evaluation and predicting molecular subtypes of cancer. They believe the market for AI tools in digital pathology will greatly expand in the future. Overall, the stakeholder believes that digitization is the future for pathology and expects other institutions to switch to digital pathology within the next 10 years.