Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41763533›Full record

ReviewThe American journal of pathology2026

Deep Learning-Enhanced Biomarker Interpretation on Cytology Cell Blocks: Foundations and Emerging Opportunities in Spatial Pathobiology.

Rong Xia, Nickolas G Littlefield, Christopher Y Park, Riyue Bao, Joan Cangiarella, Aylin Simsir, Qiangqiang Gu

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in The American journal of pathology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Rong XiaDepartment of Pathology, Grossman School of Medicine, New York University, New York, New York.
Nickolas G LittlefieldComputational Pathology and AI Center of Excellence, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Intelligent Systems Program, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Christopher Y ParkDepartment of Pathology, Grossman School of Medicine, New York University, New York, New York; Perlmutter Cancer Center, New York University Langone Health, New York, New York.
Riyue BaoDepartment of Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Joan CangiarellaDepartment of Pathology, Grossman School of Medicine, New York University, New York, New York.
Aylin SimsirDepartment of Pathology, Grossman School of Medicine, New York University, New York, New York.
Qiangqiang GuComputational Pathology and AI Center of Excellence, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Electronic address: qug14@pitt.edu.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Cytology cell block specimens are essential for diagnosing patients with advanced-stage malignancy and often represents the only available strategy for therapeutic biomarker evaluation. The use of cell blocks preserves tumor cells, captures high-grade or metastatic populations, and retains meaningful microenvironmental context, making them well suited for IHC analysis. With the rapid expansion of computational pathology, deep learning-assisted biomarker interpretation in cell blocks is emerging as a promising frontier for improving reproducibility, reducing interobserver variability, and enabling quantitative assessment of spatial tumor-immune interactions. Because many treatment-defining biomarkers are routinely assessed on cytology cell blocks, this mini-review highlights artificial intelligence-based applications for PD-L1, HER2, ER/PR, Ki-67, ALK/ROS1, BRAF V600E, and p16 markers that directly inform decisions about immunotherapy, targeted therapy, and hormone therapy. Also reviewed are emerging predictive models that convey biomarker status directly from morphology, extending the utility of artificial intelligence beyond conventional IHC interpretation. Finally, spatial pathobiology-related opportunities afforded by cell block preparations are discussed, and future directions for integrating artificial intelligence-enabled analysis into cytology workflows are outlined. Together, these advances position cytology cell blocks as an important platform for computational biomarker interpretation and morphology-driven precision oncology.

Indexed as

Biomarkers, TumorCytodiagnosisDeep LearningNeoplasmsHumansBiomarkers, Tumor

Identifiers

PMID41763533
PMCPMC13494229

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.