Digital pathology platforms can now determine the metastatic potential of cells in a tissue biopsy
(PHYSorg.com Medicine & Health)

(Medical Xpress)-One major challenge in pathology is to determine if a group of cells are cancerous. By `cancerous` one generally means that they have the potential to grow and spread, or that they have already spread from somewhere else and are therefore metastatic. Cancer cells tend to spread to other organs via the bloodstream. When they do this, they inevitably also make their way to the lymphatic system. By checking the so-called `sentinel` lymph nodes-those nodes adjacent to a primary tumor-doctors can get a good idea of whether or not a cancer has gone rogue.