Following extensive research of the Image Analysis market, using its Best Practices Research methodology, Frost & Sullivan has announced that PathXL has won the prestigious Frost & Sullivan New Product Innovation Award for 2014 for their ground-breaking tumor analysis solution, TissueMark.
TissueMark combines highly intelligent algorithms (patents pending) with a simple and intuitive workflow, to automatically detect and mark up tumor boundaries on H&E slide images; and to automatically calculate the percentage of tumor cells within the marked up area. The activity of marking up slides and estimating tumor percentage is critical to the process of extracting sufficient high-quality DNA from tissue samples, in order to run molecular tests for research or diagnostic purposes.
This process of ‘macro-dissection’ is currently a manual one, which is time-consuming and tedious for pathologists, and there is strong evidence to show that manual estimation of tumor percentages can be inaccurate and may contribute to false negatives. TissueMark performs these tasks automatically with unprecedented speed and accuracy and presents the results to pathologists for them to approve or modify as they see fit. The process is automated but the pathologist maintains ultimate control and is freed up to concentrate on more rewarding tasks.
While conducting their research, Frost and Sullivan found strong evidence that the number of pathologists in Europe and elsewhere is reducing, while their workloads are increasing. They conclude that there is an urgent need for automated solutions that can improve laboratory turnaround times without compromising reliability or quality of results. PathXL’s web-based platform for automated tumor analysis is clearly just such a solution. TissueMark also offers clear improvements to existing laboratory processes in terms of seamless interaction between departments, cost savings, tighter quality control and full auditability.
The benefits TissueMark brings to individual pathologist include savings in time, greater consistency and accuracy and a reduced need to travel, as digital pathology provides the freedom to review results remotely.
Commenting on the award, Des Speed, CEO at PathXL said:
“At PathXL, we are very proud of what we have achieved in our development of TissueMark and we are delighted that Frost & Sullivan has recognised both the innovative nature of TissueMark and the significant contribution it can make to image analysis, to better research and ultimately to patient outcomes.
With so much more in the pipeline for the Tissuemark portfolio in the coming year, this is a truly exhilarating time for PathXL.”
To date, the TissueMark algorithm focuses on the detection of colorectal, lung and breast cancer. Over the coming year PathXL will release further algorithms covering more cancer types, such a prostate cancer and melanoma.