Section of Laboratory Hematology
The Hematology and Coagulation laboratories are high volume computerized laboratories that process up to 900 hematology and 450 coagulation samples daily. These computerized instruments provide knowledge of the cellular components of the blood, including number and composition of the white blood cells, number and quality of the red blood cells and the number and size of the platelets, while the coagulation tests provide quantitative measurement of the clotting abilities of the blood. Services are provided in three different sites depending on the patient location (inpatient vs. outpatient) and the type of malignancy (hematologic vs. nonhematologic). Fast track services are provided in some settings where immediate management decisions require knowledge of particular test parameters.
Of the 900 hematology tests performed daily, most require manual morphologic examination by highly skilled technologists. Approximately 5% of these tests require review by hematopathologists to identify, quantify and classify the abnormal cells identified by the technologists. In addition to morphologic classification of peripheral blood and body fluid cells, the hematopathologists provide consultations on esoteric laboratory testing for identification and classification of coagulation abnormalities present in the MD Anderson patient population.