Practical Updates on Gastrointestinal Pathology From the CAMP 2017 Conference Open Access

The second Canadian Anatomic and Molecular Pathology conference (CAMP 2017) took place in the Whistler-Blackcomb resort in British Columbia, Canada, at the beginning of February 2017. With 81 participants and 12.5 hours of continuing medical education, accredited by the Canadian Association of Pathologists, CAMP 2017 was a very successful conference. This special section of Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine presents 4 articles representing the proceedings from CAMP 2017.

The special topic of CAMP 2017 was gastrointestinal pathology and a combined session was organized with the Symposium on Hepatic Oncology at Whistler. More than 250 pathologists, oncologists, radiologists, and surgeons participated in that multidisciplinary session. Two of the articles published in this Archives special section for CAMP 2017 cover topics presented at that session: Is There a Role for Programmed Death Ligand-1 Testing and Immunotherapy in Colorectal Cancer With Microsatellite Instability? Part I, Colorectal Cancer: Microsatellite Instability, Testing, and Clinical Implications; and Part II: The Challenge of Programmed Death Ligand-1 Testing and Its Role in Microsatellite Instability–High Colorectal Cancer. The authors of those articles, speakers at CAMP 2017, are a medical oncologist, Barbara Melosky, MD, FRCPC, and a gastrointestinal pathologist, Esmeralda Celia Marginean, MD, FRCPC, who both have extensive clinical and research experience on the topic. I hope you will enjoy their comprehensive review of the subject, which summarizes the molecular pathways of colorectal cancer, with emphasis on the microsatellite instability/mismatch repair pathway, recommended microsatellite instability testing algorithms and interpretation, and the prognostic and predictive role of microsatellite instability–high status in personalized treatment.

The third article presents the challenging clinical issue of Celiac Disease and Other Causes of Duodenitis by Daniel R. Owen, BSc, MD, and David A. Owen, MB, BCh, FRCPC. This was one of the most-appreciated lectures at CAMP, and I am positive that the lifelong experience of Dr Owen as a gastrointestinal pathologist and teacher, which captivated the CAMP audience, will captivate the readers of the Archives as well.

For the general practicing pathologist, lymphoproliferative disorders are a diagnostic challenge, given the rapidly evolving molecular diagnostic tests. In keeping with our special topic on gastrointestinal pathology, we included a practical article on Lymphoproliferative Disorders of the Gastrointestinal Tract by Brian F. Skinnider, MD, FRCPC, which we hope can be used as a reference in the daily practice of Archives readers.

Other highlights from CAMP 2017 included clinical and molecular updates and challenging cases from salivary gland neoplasms and thyroid pathology presented by renowned invited speakers from Canada (Roderick Simpson, MBChB, FRCPath) and the United States (Jennifer Hunt, MD, MEd); a debate entitled PDL-1 Testing for Immunotherapy: To Test or Not to Test—Pro: Barbara Melosky, MD, FRCPC;—and Con: Lynette Sholl, MD; and Applications of Molecular Testing in Gynecological Pathology by C. Blake Gilks, MD, FRCPC.

The conference also had a lunch session dedicated to an “out-of-the-box,” less-common, but novel, topic. At CAMP 2017, I invited my colleagues Drs Jennifer Hunt and Lynette Sholl to join me in discussing the role and use of social media in pathology in a session entitled Pathologist's (In)Visibility in the Medical World. I was delighted to see the extent of residents' participation not only in this session but also in the integration of social media into their learning and teaching.

The fast-evolving field of molecular pathology requires practical updates for practicing pathologists, and that is what the Canadian Anatomic and Molecular Pathology Conference is trying to offer. CAMP 2018 will take place in the same magnificent setting and will have a focus on genitourinary pathology among other topics of general interest.

We appreciate the opportunity to publish this special section and thank the editor-in chief, Philip T. Cagle, MD, the other members of the CAMP 2017 executive committee, the authors, and the reviewers. We also thank Katie Giesen, at the editorial office of the Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, for her help in publishing this special section.