Behind the scenes of EQA-characteristics, capabilities, benefits and assets of external quality assessment (EQA).

The main stakeholders in external quality assessment (EQA) programs are the participants, in whose interests these challenges are ultimately organised. EQA schemes in the medical field contribute to improving the quality of patient care by evaluating the analytical and diagnostic quality of laboratory and point-of-care tests (POCT) by independent third parties and, if necessary, pointing out erroneous measurement results and analytical or diagnostic improvement potential. Other benefits include the option of using EQA samples for other important laboratory procedures, such as the verification or validation of diagnostic medical devices (IVD-MDs), a contribution to the estimation of measurement uncertainty, a means of training and educating laboratory staff through educational EQA programmes or samples, or even for independent and documented monitoring of staff competence, such as on samples with unusual or even exceptional characteristics.

Enhancing postmortem diagnostics: over a decade of ISO 17020 accreditation and guidelines implementation in forensic pathology.

Forensic autopsies remain indispensable for accurately determining the cause and manner of death. However, pathologists face significant challenges inherent to the complex process of postmortem diagnostics (PMD), including the potential for diagnostic errors. The implementation of quality assurance (QA) mechanisms is crucial for minimizing these errors.

Standardization through education of molecular pathology: a spotlight on the European Masters in Molecular Pathology.

Despite advancements in precision medicine, many cancer patients globally, particularly those in resource-constrained environments, face significant challenges in accessing high-quality molecular testing and targeted therapies. The considerable heterogeneity in molecular testing highlights the urgent need to harmonize practices across Europe and beyond, establishing a more standardized and consistent approach in MP laboratories. Professionals, especially molecular pathologists, must move beyond traditional education to cope with this heterogeneity.

Training pathologists to assess stromal tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes in breast cancer synergises efforts in clinical care and scientific research.

A growing body of research supports stromal tumour-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) density in breast cancer to be a robust prognostic and predicive biomarker. The gold standard for stromal TIL density quantitation in breast cancer is pathologist visual assessment using haematoxylin and eosin-stained slides. Artificial intelligence/machine-learning algorithms are in development to automate the stromal TIL scoring process, and must be validated against a reference standard such as pathologist visual assessment.