What is a Histotechnologist?

Let me demonstrate what a Histotechnologist does by going on a high level macroscopic visual journey. Pretend you are looking down from the sky as I walk you thru this process. Today, we will travel thru the lab and use your skin as an example. Have you ever noticed a mole, a rough scaly growth or spot on your skin that started to change? Perhaps it changed color, was painful to the touch, got itchy, crusty or started to spontaneously bleed. Just being unsightly is enough to schedule an appointment with your primary care physician. You will most likely be referred to a dermatologist who specializes in a variety of skin conditions. The dermatologist will take a sample of the skin area in question. The sample will either be a shave biopsy, a punch biopsy, an excisional biopsy or an incisional biopsy. The skin sample is placed immediately in a preservative, usually 10% formalin or 10% zinc formalin to stop autolysis. The formalin preserves the specimen, stops decomposition and will allow the lab to see the skin as it was while attached to your body. Once the specimen is removed from the body, it will quickly lose its vital blood supply and it will die. The formalin fixative stops that. This is where pathology and the Histotechnologist take over. The specimen will be described noting any unusual features and submitted either entirely or as representative sections. The Histotechnologist, with the help of specialized equipment will produce a microscopic slide that allows the Pathologist to evaluate the skin sample. The Pathologist will be microscopically surveying the slide looking at all normal and abnormal cell structures. They will initially be looking at a Hematoxylin and Eosin stain. ( we call it an H&E). The Hematoxylin stains the nucleus and nucleoli purplish blue and determines if it is undergoing cell division (mitosis) or not. The eosin stains the cytoplasm, connective tissue and blood vessels along with a few other cells pinkish red. Occasionally additional, even more specialized tests are ordered to document any abnormal cells and to confirm any abnormal conditions. Now that you have an idea what a Histotechnologist does, come back again to learn what a Traveling Histotechnologist does, why we travel, where we travel, the difference between a corporate traveler and an agency traveler, contracts, average pay, what three shades of eosin means, what Digital pathology is and how it will affect your future, exercising while on the road and so many more topics.