To be able to answer some of the most important questions you will ever ask, your doctor needs more information about what is happening inside your body than is available from examinations performed in the office or at the hospital bedside. The answers to many of these questions can be found in the pathology laboratory. Although you have no outward symptoms and feel well, changes may be taking place in your body that are not noticeable during physical exams or on x-rays. It is only by conducting laboratory tests that the pathologist and your doctor can be sure that you or your family members are free of disease.
Some tests can actually help to prevent the development of disease.
Tests done in a pathology laboratory are performed for a number of reasons. Examples of screening tests include the Pap smear for women, prostate blood tests for men, and cholesterol levels for all adults. Other tests are performed to make a definite diagnosis, usually when you have symptoms of diseases. Such tests include cardiac enzymes that would be performed if you were having chest pain and the doctor suspected you were having a heart attack. Another type of diagnostic test is the biopsy.