Patent ID: 7177454

Claim:
A method for automated detection of a cell proliferative disorder, comprising, a) identifying a processing parameter for a sample on a slide, the sample labeled with an antibody that binds to a protein associated with a cell proliferative disorder; b) scanning the slide at a plurality of locations at a lower magnification on an optical system, comprising a microscope subsystem having a plurality of objectives, an automated X-Y-Z stage, a CCD camera and a processing algorithm, c) acquiring a low magnification image at the low magnification at each location in the scanned area; d) transforming substantially all pixels of the image from a first color space to a second color space; e) processing each lower magnification image using a computer processor and the processing algorithm to detect rare candidate objects of interest in said second color space with reference to a plurality of predetermined thresholds; f) storing stage coordinates of each location for each candidate object of interest; g) adjusting the optical system to a higher magnification; h) repositioning the stage to the location for each candidate object of interest; i) acquiring a higher magnification image of each candidate object of interest; and j) storing each higher magnification image.