Rising Therapy-Related Leukemia Rates Signal New Testing Demands for Clinical Labs
Long‑term data from Japan’s Osaka Cancer Registry show therapy‑related acute myeloid leukemia (tAML) rates climbing from 0.13 to 0.36 cases per 100,000 between 1990 and 2020, now representing 6.5% of all AML diagnoses. The proportion of tAML within AML cases has nearly doubled as cancer survivorship improves. The study also notes a rise in tAML following breast‑cancer treatment, while gastric‑cancer‑linked cases decline. These trends signal a growing need for clinical laboratories to expand genomic testing and longitudinal monitoring of secondary malignancies.
CDC Testing Pause Puts Clinical Labs at the Center of Public Health Response
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has temporarily halted testing for several infectious diseases, including rabies, poxviruses, certain parasites, and lymphocytic choriomeningitis. The pause, framed as a routine quality‑assurance review that began in 2024, is expected to last a...
NYC Health + Hospitals CEO Signals Willingness to Replace Radiologists with AI
NYC Health + Hospitals CEO Mitchell H. Katz announced the system is ready to replace many radiologists with AI once regulatory hurdles are cleared. He cited AI’s ability to interpret mammograms and X‑rays, promising lower labor costs and expanded screening...
Study: Toxic Exposure in Pregnancy May Drive Disease Risk Across Generations
A Washington State University study found that a single exposure to the fungicide vinclozolin during pregnancy can trigger disease patterns that persist for up to 20 generations in rats. The epigenetic alterations in germline cells act like stable mutations, with...
Walk-In Lab Testing Expands Patient Access and Autonomy in West Virginia
Walk‑in laboratory services are rapidly expanding in West Virginia, allowing patients to purchase routine diagnostic tests without a physician referral. Facilities such as Any Lab Test Now and hospital outreach centers provide transparent, upfront pricing and deliver results through secure...
WHO Expands TB Diagnostic Toolkit with Point-of-Care Tests, Tongue Swabs, and Sample Pooling
The World Health Organization released new guidelines that introduce near point‑of‑care nucleic acid amplification tests, tongue‑swab specimens, and sputum pooling to speed and broaden TB diagnosis. These tools aim to shift testing to primary‑care settings, lower costs, and improve throughput...
Study: Breath Test Could Transform Microbiome Diagnostics for Clinical Labs
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia have demonstrated that volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in exhaled breath mirror gut microbiome activity. Published in Cell Metabolism, the proof‑of‑concept study showed breath profiles could differentiate children with...
Executive War College 2026 to Spotlight AI, Workforce Solutions, and Financial Strategy for Clinical Labs
The 31st Annual Executive War College will convene April 28‑29 in New Orleans, bringing together clinical laboratory executives to address reimbursement, staffing, compliance, and emerging technologies. A new Executive Forum on Digital Pathology Management will spotlight AI‑driven workflows and data...
World-First Portable Multi-Pathogen CRISPR Test Seeks to Improve STI Diagnostics
Researchers at Australia’s Peter Doherty Institute have created a portable, CRISPR‑based diagnostic that simultaneously detects syphilis, HSV, chlamydia and gonorrhea in under an hour. The assay also identifies a key antibiotic‑resistance gene in gonorrhea, delivering 97‑100% accuracy compared with laboratory...
Ex-NFL Player Convicted in $328M Genetic Testing Fraud as Medicare Scrutiny Intensifies
A Dallas federal jury convicted former NFL player Keith J. Gray of orchestrating a $328 million Medicare fraud scheme that billed for unnecessary cardiovascular genetic tests. Gray, who owned Axis Professional Labs and Kingdom Health Laboratory, was found guilty of conspiracy,...
Clinical Labs May Gain New Edge in Early Cancer Detection with Epigenetic Instability Liquid Biopsy
Johns Hopkins researchers introduced the Epigenetic Instability Index (EII), a metric that quantifies DNA methylation variability to enhance liquid biopsy performance. In a proof‑of‑concept study of over 2,000 methylation samples, the EII model identified 269 CpG islands and achieved high...
Industry Innovators to Reveal High-Performance Strategies at 31st Annual Executive War College
The 31st Annual Executive War College will convene April 28‑29 in New Orleans, spotlighting early‑adopter labs tackling reimbursement pressure, workforce shortages, and new regulations. Speakers include MD Anderson’s Walter McAndrew on molecular workflow cost cuts, Abbott’s Jonathan Burgart on turning excess capacity...
How Clinical Laboratories Can Prepare for Crisis Events Before They Happen
Clinical laboratories face unpredictable crises ranging from equipment failures to cyber attacks, demanding proactive resilience. Experts Tracy Durnan and Jason Nagy stress embedding preparedness into daily routines, from identifying cascade failures to regular infrastructure testing. Cross‑training, scenario‑based drills, and redundant...
Blood Test Using P-Tau217 Biomarker Predicts Alzheimer’s Symptom Onset Within 3–4 Years
Researchers at Washington University have created a blood‑test model using plasma p‑tau217 that can predict the onset of Alzheimer’s symptoms within three to four years. The model, validated on 603 participants, shows age‑dependent timelines, with younger individuals experiencing longer asymptomatic...
Blood-Based Metabolomics May Enable Earlier Detection of Gallbladder Cancer, Study Finds
Researchers from Tezpur University and the University of Illinois Urbana‑Champaign identified blood‑based metabolic signatures that distinguish gallbladder cancer patients—both with and without gallstones—from individuals with gallstones alone. Using untargeted metabolomics, they detected 180 to 225 altered metabolites, many linked to...
