By Amilynne Eddington, Director of Laboratory Operations, Lumea
Ask anyone who has spent time in an anatomic pathology lab, and they will tell you the same thing: prostate core biopsies are some of the most annoying and time-consuming specimens to process. I have worked in high-volume labs for years, and I have seen firsthand what a heavy prostate day looks like. Dozens of containers, each holding fragile, thread-thin cores that arrive twisted, curled, and sometimes tangled in material that is falling apart. It is a lot of labor for a specimen that labs are not generously reimbursed to process.
That reality is part of why I believe the conversation about prostate biopsy technology cannot stay in the urology suite. What happens in the lab matters just as much as what happens at the needle, and for a long time, the lab side of this equation has not gotten the attention it deserves.
A standard 12-core case can consume a lot of time in a lab, and we’re also required to store those slides and blocks for a minimum of ten years. In high-volume settings, the cumulative burden on staff, space, and resources is substantial. In a small lab, that burden is amplified. Two or three technicians processing even a handful of prostate cases can find that a single specimen type has taken over the entire day, leaving little bandwidth for anything else.
What compounds the frustration is that all of this effort does not guarantee the best possible diagnostic outcome. Cores that arrive fragmented, curled, or stuck together present real challenges for pathologists. Orientation is lost, tissue length is compromised, and the pathologist receives a puzzle instead of a specimen.
This is the problem that drew me to Lumea’s technology, and it is the problem I watch it solve every day. The BxBoard® and BxChip® were designed specifically to address the pre-analytical failures that make prostate processing so difficult, and their impact is felt at every stage of the workflow.
The BxBoard replaces traditional formalin bottles at the point of collection. Its six lanes hold each core securely from the moment of extraction, preventing the curling, fragmentation, and orientation loss that occur when tissue floats freely in liquid formalin. Cases that once arrived at the lab in 12 separate containers now arrive in two boards. That alone changes the tone of a day before grossing even begins.
The BxChip takes over in the lab, holding up to six cores in a single cassette throughout fixation and processing. Because the chip is made from a biomimetic material, it sections on the microtome just like tissue. A 12-core case that previously required 12 blocks, 12 slides, and all the storage that entails now requires two blocks and two slides.
I want to be honest about one thing: adopting new technology in a histology lab is not always a seamless transition. Technicians who have spent years developing a feel for traditional methods understandably approach change with caution. In my experience, it typically takes awhile for staff to become fully comfortable processing patient samples with the new system. The validation process is an important part of that, and so is giving technicians the time and space to trust themselves with the technology.
One tool that has made a meaningful difference in that trust-building process is the BxCamera®. Before a specimen ever reaches the grossing station, the camera captures a visual record of exactly what was received and placed in the cassette while simultaneously auto-grossing the specimen. For new technicians, that documentation is reassuring. For lab leadership, it is a quality assurance asset. And for clinics, it eliminates the ambiguity that can arise when a specimen is disputed. Having a clear, timestamped image of every case removes a layer of risk that traditional workflows simply cannot account for.
One of the more common concerns I hear is about cutting time. As histotechs, we pride ourselves on producing quality slides quickly. Cutting a block containing a BxChip takes slightly longer, on average, than a traditional block containing a biopsy. For techs accustomed to being measured by blocks per hour, that can initially feel like a step backward. The solution is a shift in how productivity is measured: specimens per hour, rather than blocks per hour, captures the real efficiency gain. When labs make that adjustment, the improvement becomes obvious. Estimates from experienced users suggest big time savings once staff are fully comfortable with the system.
There are ergonomic benefits worth noting as well. Rotator cuff injuries are among the most common repetitive stress injuries in histology, driven in large part by the repetitive motion of the microtome wheel. Cutting two BxChip blocks instead of 12 individual cores meaningfully reduces that exposure. For technicians thinking about the long term, that is not a small thing.
Beyond the operational gains, the technology offers something that matters even more to me personally: better source material for diagnosis. Cores that arrive intact, straight, and properly oriented give pathologists more to work with. The BxChip’s ability to maintain tissue in a single plane increases the histologic surface area available on the glass slide. Research has shown a 14.5% average increase in tissue surface area and a 28% increase in biopsy core length on the final slide compared to traditional processing. That additional tissue translates directly into diagnostic confidence.
I have heard this reflected in conversations with clinicians. One customer, after seeing the difference in specimen quality, remarked that the cores looked significantly better, straighter and longer, and wondered whether the lab had switched to larger needles. The answer, of course, is that the needle had not changed. The handling had.
That distinction matters. The tissue was always there. The difference is whether it arrives at the pathologist in a condition that allows it to tell the full story.
For urologists, the message I would want to leave is this: what you do at the point of collection shapes everything that follows. The deliberateness with which a core is placed on the board, labeled, and transported is not a small administrative detail. It is the first step in a chain of decisions that ends with a patient receiving a diagnosis and a treatment plan. When that chain is handled well, from collection through grossing through the final slide, the result is more tissue, more clarity, and more confidence for everyone involved, including the patient.
Lab staff who have made the transition feel it. Urologists who see the downstream results notice it. And patients, though they may never know the difference, benefit in ways that are anything but invisible.
To learn more about Lumea’s tissue-handling technology, visit our Tissue Tech page.
