Samuel I. McCash, MD

I am a clinical pathologist working in the Department of Laboratory Medicine, which means I am responsible for laboratory test results that we use to guide the treatment plan for patients.  There is a lot that goes into testing samples of blood, bodily fluids, and swabs, and I must make sure these tests are performed properly to give patients and doctors accurate results.  Interpretating lab results can also be difficult, particularly for esoteric tests.  This is where I come in, helping both doctors and patients understand what all the numbers and words mean in their lab reports.

One of my areas of focus is the interpretation of pregnancy tests in cancer patients.  Many patients and physicians are not aware that occasionally, a cancer patient will have a positive pregnancy test even if they are not pregnant.  In laboratory medicine we call this a false positive.  I assist healthcare workers to determine when a false-positive pregnancy test occurs and help clear patients for their upcoming procedures and chemotherapy sessions.

I also am an expert in the interpretation of serum protein electrophoresis, a test used in the diagnosis and monitoring of multiple myeloma.  Due to the complexity of our myeloma patient population, test results are often not straight forward and require a clinical pathologist to review the findings alongside the patient’s clinical history to formulate an accurate diagnosis.  These diagnoses are incredibly important as they are used to guide patient care and may affect access to treatment protocols or determine if a patient is relapsing.  I also work closely with the multiple myeloma team to help them decide on the best treatment plan for their patients.

I am board certified in pathology clinical informatics, and I direct MSK’s laboratory information system team.  My goal is to allow patients and physicians access laboratory results in a manner that is easy to understand and navigate.  I work closely with the patient portal team to make sure lab results and other information is available and presented in a manner easily interpreted by patients.