New digital pathology technology has been developed with the aim of establishing new ways of making pathologic diagnoses by using pathology slides to produce high-resolution images of 3.6 billion pixels at high speed; company hopes to bring technology to product stage by next February.

August. 2004.

Hamamatsu Photonics has developed digital pathology technology using a high-sensitivity pathology slide scanner (virtual microscope) that supports 3.6 billion pixels and high resolution, thus achieving speeds high enough to support practical application. The company has been testing a prototype since August 20 and is hoping to have the final product ready by next February. The achievement will speed up the pace of digitalization in the field of pathology and is expected to contribute to science and society in diverse ways, among them diagnostic evaluation through networks, enabling remote diagnoses in areas where there is a shortage of pathologists and technicians, specialization and division of labor based on the area of diagnosis, and educating medical students and pathologists.