Histopathology is the diagnosis and study of diseases of the tissues, and involves examining tissues and/or cells under a microscope. Histopathologists are responsible for making tissue diagnoses and helping clinicians manage a patient’s care.

Histopathologists are doctors who work closely with other clinical specialties. They can reach a diagnosis by examining a small piece of tissue from the skin, liver, kidney or other organ. This is called a biopsy.

They examine the tissue carefully under a microscope, looking for changes in cells that might explain what is causing a patient’s illness. Around 20 million histopathology slides are examined in the UK each year.