In Reply.—We would like to thank Drs Perkocha and Carry, Mr Achermann, and the Board of Directors of the California Society of Pathologists for their recent letter regarding the College of American Pathologists cancer protocols. We appreciate your input and outline of the problems related to the cancer protocols.
As stated in our editorial,1 we hope to address as many of the problems as possible. During the past year we have taken the time to reflect on the strengths and weaknesses of the cancer protocols and have started to change our process for protocol revision and review. Some of those changes can be seen in the 2018 protocols released earlier this summer.2
As we continue to assess our options and improve our processes, we expect to be able to address more issues. We appreciate the feedback from pathologists regarding the cancer protocols; this is a critical element for ongoing improvement.
Author notes
1Department of Pathology, Mayo Clinic Florida, Jacksonville
2Department of Pathology, St Jude Medical Center, Fullerton, California
3Department of Pathology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee
4The Joint Pathology Center, Silver Spring, Maryland
5Department of Pathology, Jefferson Regional Medical Center, Jefferson Hills, Pennsylvania
6Department of Pathology & Genomic Medicine, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas
Accepted for publication October 12, 2017.
Published as an Early Online Release November 22, 2017.
The authors have no relevant financial interest in the products or companies described in this article.
Competing Interests
The identification of specific products or scientific instrumentation is considered an integral part of the scientific endeavor and does not constitute endorsement or implied endorsement on the part of the author, the US Department of Defense, or any component agency. The views expressed in this presentation are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the US Army, US Air Force, US Navy, the Department of Defense, or the US Government.