People often wonder, “How do pathologists identify the patterns that lead to a diagnosis?” This is a fundamental question, the answer to which requires significant insight into the psyche of pathologists. Veteran pathologists have long used everyday objects to describe what they see under the microscope to impart their wisdom to their junior colleagues: fried eggs for plasma cells and starry sky appearance for Burkitt lymphoma are two commonly used examples that come to mind. This translation however, is not a unilateral interaction. After long days of staring down upon the pink and purple world of cells, we often begin to recognize that “pathology” follows us home. Many have, while waiting in an elevator or walking, glanced at the tiles on the floor or glimpsed at the patterns on the walls or ceilings, been confronted with a vague semblance of a pathologic entity ( and ). This is not unique to pathologists; as most clinicians and radiologists have at one stage or another, noticed familiar pathognomonic patterns in nature or inanimate objects.
展开▼
