The evolving landscape of pathology is now digital, generating a wealth of untapped data and creating a new data modality from which life sciences can extract valuable insights. This shift is transformative to accelerate precision medicine drug discovery, development, and ultimately delivery to patients.
Proscia’s recent webinar, “From Bedside to Bench and Back: How Digital Pathology is Fueling Precision Medicine with Unprecedented Real World Data,” highlighted the role of the anatomic pathology lab and digital pathology in generating real-world data that is ready to be analyzed by drug developers, the pathway to delivering this data efficiently, and how the resulting advancements from this data make their way back to precision care for patients. Nathan Buchbinder, Chief Strategy Officer at Proscia, moderated this discussion with Dr. Ben Freiberg, Principal Informatics Systems Lead at Genentech, and Dr. Derek Welch, the Chief Medical Officer at PathGroup.
Digital pathology and real-world data offer transformative opportunities and set the stage for enhanced patient outcomes and advancements in precision medicine, as highlighted by the webinar’s key takeaways presented in a Q&A format.
Why is the digitization of pathology data essential for healthcare decision-making?
Dr. Welch noted about 70% of clinical decisions rely on pathology and laboratory data. The digitization of this data introduces several benefits. Utilizing digital scans instead of the traditional microscope allows practitioners to work faster and more accurately. Furthermore, the data available in the digital format can unveil previously hidden insights about the patient, making it an invaluable tool for data-driven healthcare.
How does the digital workflow in pathology operate?
The digital workflow in pathology, as explained by Dr. Welch, involves the use of scanners to digitize slides and advanced software to manage workflows and store the images. These digital images are viewed through software on high-definition screens, replacing the need for microscopes. PathGroup uses Proscia’s software pathology platform for reviewing digital images and managing workflows across their 230 pathologists.
How is digitized pathology data valuable to therapeutic research and development?
Dr. Freiberg explained that digitized data plays a crucial role in drug research and development especially in preclinical and clinical trials. Digitized pathology data helps with toxicity assessments and reviewing patient biopsies to determine if the medicine is actually working. Dr. Freiberg explained that they can see how patients in real-world datasets responded to different treatments, especially when combining multiple data sources together.
Dr. Freiberg also explained how real-world data helps pharmaceutical companies who have large datasets from clinical trials gain valuable insights that are more representative of the population, without having to conduct additional trials.
What are the key components that real-world data needs to have in order for it to be valuable for therapeutic R&D?
Dr. Freiberg emphasized how the images must be of sufficient quality, and that the data is able to be integrated with other datasets to provide a comprehensive view of the patients. Dr. Welch emphasized how this is top of mind for PathGroup and they organize their operations to ensure data is high-quality. Dr. Welch suggested a shift in collecting clinical data; from relying on spoken word or transcribed PDF reports to actual data collection methods such as dropdowns and radio buttons.
Dr. Freiberg highlighted how one of the major benefits to real-world data comes from avoiding worry about access controls to clinical trial data as the data has already been de-identified, tokenized, and ready for secondary use. Dr. Freiberg also emphasized the importance of the data being delivered in a machine-readable format with the ability to connect tools and access the data in a meaningful way, shortening the time to insight.
What are the transformative opportunities for precision medicine through digital pathology and real-world data?
Dr. Welch explained how the potential of digital pathology in uncovering insights and patterns that are invisible under the microscope holds massive untapped potential. Algorithms can identify mutational defects, predict patient response to therapy, track tumor progression, and analyze unstained images.
Dr. Freiberg echoed Dr. Welch’s enthusiasm for digital pathology algorithms, explaining that those being developed and designed at Genentech and beyond have the ability to look across several different data modalities in addition to the image, allowing scientists to get a complete, 360 degree view of the patient that allows for more informed patient stratification in clinical trials.
In conclusion, the digitization of pathology data, its organization, and its integration with other real-world data stand to revolutionize the world of precision medicine. As more pathology partners consolidate their data and collaborate, the field will undoubtedly see new scientific approaches, insights, and better patient outcomes.
From Bedside to Bench and Back: How Digital Pathology is Fueling Precision Medicine with Unprecedented Real World Data is now available for OnDemand viewing.
