Faculty Biographies


SEENA AISNER, MD
Professor & Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs
Residency Program Director

Dr. Aisner received her medical training from George Washington University School of Medicine and completed her residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. Before moving to Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School (NJMS), Dr. Aisner was professor of Pathology, Oncology and Orthopedics and Director of the Residency Training Program and Cytopathology at The University of Maryland Medical Systems in Baltimore, Maryland. At Rutgers-NJMS, Dr. Aisner serves as Vice-Chair of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. She is a diplomat of the American Board of Pathology in Anatomic Pathology, Clinical Pathology and Cytopathology. Dr. Aisner has served on the board of the World Health Organization and the pathology board of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer and is a co-author on the WHO Fascicle Pathology and Genetics: Tumours of the Lung, Pleura, Thymus and Heart, 4th Ed. Dr. Aisner has been a member of Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG-ACRIN) since 1982 and serves as the pathologist to the Thoracic Committee, Prevention Committee and Lab Sciences Committee. Dr. Aisner has been actively involved in protocol development and participation. Dr. Aisner has served as the Residency Program Director since 2006 and has also served as a consultant to the Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ).



ADA BAISRE de LEON, MD
Associate Professor

Dr. Ada Baisre attended medical school at the Superior Institute of Medical Sciences of Havana, Cuba. Dr. Baisre completed residency training in Anatomical and Clinical Pathology at UMDNJ (now Rutgers)-New Jersey Medical School. Following her residency, Dr. Baisre continued her training with fellowships in Oncologic Surgical Pathology and Molecular Pathology at Memorial- Sloan Kettering Cancer Center as well as in Neuropathology at Columbia University. Dr. Baisre has been a faculty member at New Jersey Medical School since 2009, where she practices Surgical and Autopsy Neuropathology as well as Molecular Pathology. Dr. Baisre’s responsibilities also include teaching medical students and residents as well as dental students. She also collaborates in research projects with other faculty members and in advisory committee for graduate students.



TESSA BERGSBAKEN, PhD
Assistant Professor

Dr. Tessa Bergsbaken received her Ph.D. from the Department of Microbiology at the University of Washington in 2008. She continued her training in the Department of Immunology at University of Washington where she focused on tissue-resident memory CD8+ T cell populations that develop in the intestinal tissue in response to local infection. Dr. Bergsbaken’s research interests include understanding the mechanisms of T cell differentiation and maintenance in the intestine and other mucosal sites and determining the unique functions of tissue-resident memory lymphocyte subsets during secondary infection. In addition, her lab is utilizing these findings to improve CD8+ T cell functionality in the context of colorectal cancer immunotherapy.



JOAN DURBIN, MD, PhD
Professor

Dr. Joan Durbin completed her MD and her PhD in Microbiology at Rutgers University and Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in 1989, and began the Experimental Pathology residency program at New York University that same year. This program allowed MD PhDs to train in both anatomic and experimental pathology during their residency. Dr. Durbin did her research training in the laboratory of Dr. David Levy, studying how the body turns on its antiviral defenses at the start of an infection. Her first faculty appointment was in the Pediatrics Department at the Ohio State University, where she worked as a pediatric pathologist and established her own laboratory. She joined the Pathology Department at Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School in 2013 where she has continued to practice pathology and direct her experimental pathology research program. Her laboratory is focused on the body’s response to respiratory virus infection: how pathogens are first detected, and how they are eventually eliminated. One facet of this work is vaccine development, trying to determine how to generate protective immunity without damage to the host. She is in the process of testing an experimental vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, which is a major cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in infants and young children. There is currently no vaccine to protect children against this infection, and it remains a serious clinical problem. She is a member of the Center for Inflammation and Immunity at NJMS.



KAREN EDELBLUM, PhD
Assistant Professor and Chancellor Scholar

Dr. Edelblum earned her Ph.D. in Cell & Developmental Biology from Vanderbilt University and pursued her interests in gastrointestinal mucosal immunology at The University of Chicago. Her laboratory studies the contribution of intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes (IEL) in the maintenance of mucosal homeostasis through their surveillance of the epithelial barrier. Using an interdisciplinary approach and state-of-the-art intravital imaging technology, Dr. Edelblum’s laboratory investigates the molecular mechanisms involved in the regulation of gamma delta IEL migration and protection against microbial invasion. Her research program is focused on understanding how immune/epithelial interactions shape innate immune responses to pathogenic and commensal bacteria as a means to treat inflammatory bowel disease.



PATRICIA FITZGERALD-BOCARSLY, PhD
Professor & Vice Chair for Basic Science
Scientific Director of Flow Cytometry & Immunology Core Laboratory

Dr. Fitzgerald-Bocarsly received her undergraduate degree from UCLA, her PhD from Boston University and her post-doctoral training at the Sloan Kettering Institute for Cancer Research. She is Vice Chair for Basic Science of the Department and Scientific Director of the Flow Cytometry and Immunology Core Laboratory at the NJMS. Her research focuses on the human innate immune response to viral infections, with a focus on plasmacytoid dendritic cells. Her lab was among the very first to describe these cells and the first to describe their dysregulation in the context of HIV infection. Her current research focuses on the signaling pathways that lead to the production of type I and type III interferons in human pDC, how these cells differ in different anatomical locations, and how they change in the context of aging with and without HIV infection as well as the immunometabolism of these cells in these different immune compartments and disease states.



VALERIE FITZHUGH, MD
Associate Professor

Dr. Fitzhugh earned her BA in 2000 from Rutgers University and her MD from New Jersey Medical School in 2004. She completed her first year of residency at Albany Medical Center from 2004 to 2005 before returning to New Jersey Medical School to complete her training from 2005-2008 where she also served as a Chief Resident in her third and fourth postgraduate years. She completed fellowship training in cytopathology at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine from 2008-2009. Dr. Fitzhugh joined the faculty of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine in 2009 at the level of assistant professor and was promoted to associate professor in 2014. She is heavily involved in pathology resident education, giving lectures and providing education at the microscope. Dr. Fitzhugh is also heavily involved in medical student education as she gives several lectures in the Musculoskeletal and lntegumentary Systems Course (which she co- directs) and the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine Systemic Pathology Course. She was recently named the discipline lead for Pathology in the medical school. She also provides education to residents in the orthopaedic surgery residency program. Dr. Fitzhugh provides medical service through diagnosis of surgical and cytopathology specimens. Dr. Fitzhugh is an invited member of both the International Skeletal Society and the New York Bone Society, both societies of pathologists, surgeons, and radiologists who are dedicated to education and advancement of interest in musculoskeletal diseases. Dr. Fitzhugh's research and medical interests are in bone and soft tissue pathology, and particularly in tumors of bone and soft tissue.



MARK GALAN, MD
Assistant Professor

Dr. Galan received his undergraduate education at Columbia University, and attended medical school at Georgetown University. He completed his residency in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology, as well as a fellowship in cytopathology, at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, followed by a fellowship in Surgical Pathology at the University of Pennsylvania. His professional interests include gastrointestinal pathology and cytopathology. He is also interested in international projects, and has volunteered as a physician in Peru and Vietnam.



MICHELE GEBOFF, PhD
Assistant Professor
Director of Clinical Microbiology Laboratory

Dr. Michele Burday Geboff, Ph.D., is Director of Clinical Microbiology and previous Director of the Clinical Laboratories. Dr. Geboff is a Diplomate of the American Board of Medical Microbiology. Dr. Geboff received an A.B. degree with Honors in Chemistry/Biology from Douglass College, Rutgers University and a Ph.D. degree in Biophysics from The University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. Dr. Geboff completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of North Carolina, Department of Hospital Laboratories.



ANTHONY GRYGOTIS, MD
Assistant Professor
Director, Division of Clinical Pathology

Dr. Grygotis is the Clinical Laboratory Director for the University Hospital Laboratory in Newark, New Jersey. He oversees Laboratory operations, develops general Laboratory policies, and chairs the Laboratory Quality Assurance and Continuous Quality Improvement Committee. As Clinical Chemistry Director, he is responsible for Clinical Chemistry policies, procedures, and proficiency testing, for evaluating and selecting new or replacement test methods and equipment, and for validating all new test methods in that Laboratory section. He signs out the majority of hemoglobin and serum protein electrophoresis studies. Prior to his medical education, Dr. Grygotis earned an electrical engineering degree and worked in the fields of biomedical and computer engineering. As the Pathology Informatics Director for the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Dr. Grygotis oversees the integrity of the Department's data flow and is one of the key faculty members ensuring timely transmission of accurate pathology data to clinicians involved in direct patient care. He is interested in using his experience with computer, instrumentation, and laboratory operations to design effective laboratory systems and processes. He instructs house staff in clinical chemistry, laboratory management, laboratory quality assurance, and pathology informatics. He is regularly on call 24/7 for Blood Bank and other Laboratory issues.



DEBRA HELLER, MD
Professor

Dr. Heller received her medical training at New York Medical College and completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York. Her education continued at Mount Sinai School of Medicine where she completed a residency in Anatomic Pathology, and fellowships in Pediatric Pathology and Gynecological Pathology. She is a diplomat in Pediatric Pathology, Anatomic Pathology, and Obstetrics & Gynecology. Dr. Heller is Professor with tenure of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, with joint appointments in the Department of Pediatrics, as well as the Departments of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health at Rutgers-NJ Medical School. Dr. Heller is the author of over 200 published articles and numerous books and book chapters on issues relating to poor pregnancy outcomes relating to placental disease, and gynecologic oncology. She serves as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Lower Genital Tract Disease, and chairs the Perinatal Committee of the Society for Pediatric Pathology.


Kenneth M. Klein, MD, FCAP

Professor, Emeritus

Dr. Klein received his medical degree, cum laude, from the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium), Faculty of Medicine and completed his residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at the New York University-Bellevue Medical Center.  Before moving to Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School (NJMS) in 1976, he was Assistant Professor of Pathology at the NYU School of Medicine and Assistant Attending Pathologist at Bellevue Hospital.  At Rutgers-NJMS, he served for many years as the Pathology Course Director and Pathology Residency Program Director, was the founding director of the Disease Processes, Prevention and Therapeutics Course and the founding co-director of the Digestive Disease Block in the current curriculum.  He also served as Assistant Dean of Student Affairs and was Acting Chairman of Pathology at NJMS and Acting Chief of Service of the Pathology Service at University Hospital. He chaired or co-chaired a number of education committees at NJMS during his 41 years as a full-time faculty member.   Nationally, he has been the Middle Atlantic Regional Commissioner for the Laboratory Accreditation Programs of the College of American Pathologists since 2002, prior to that, he was the New Jersey State Commissioner for the CAP.  He has served for many years as the primary liver and gastrointestinal pathologist at Martland-College-University Hospital and was a major member of the Department of Medicine’s Digestive Disease Service.  A significant educator at NJMS, he has been recognized with 31 Golden Apples (including 3 Lifetime Achievement Awards) by the students, induction into Alpha Omega Alpha National Honor Society, selection as a Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine (Gold Humanism Society) recipient and selection by the Association of Pathology Chairs with the Michelle Raible Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Pathology Education.  

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RANIE KOSHY, MD
Associate Professor
Medical Director, Transfusion Medicine Services

Dr. Koshy is board certified in Transfusion Medicine and Anatomic & Clinical Pathology by the American Board of Pathology. Dr. Koshy has over 34 years of experience in Transfusion Medicine and Clinical Pathology; she has worked > 17 years at the University Hospital, Transfusion services and 17 years as Medical Director of Blood program at large donor centers such as American Red Cross, Blood Center of NJ and New York Blood Center. In addition to serving as the Medical Director, Dr. Koshy served as the President and CEO of the Blood Center of NJ in East Orange, NJ. Dr. Koshy has expertise in acute care transfusion support for high risk patients such as Trauma, Sickle Cell Disease, Therapeutic Apheresis, Acute GI Bleeders, Liver Transplant, Hematology/Oncology, Neonates and high risk Obstetrics and Gynecology patients. She also has expertise in management of patients with multiple antibodies in need of emergency transfusions.



YOSUKE KUMAMOTO, PhD
Assistant Professor

Dr. Kumamoto obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo with Dr. Tatsuro Irimura. He started his training as a biochemist studying the molecular function of mammalian C-type lectins, but later he got interested in cellular immunology of cells expressing those lectins. In 2007, he moved to Dr. Akiko Iwasaki's laboratory at Yale University, where he found that a subset of dendritic cells expressing a C-type lectin CD301b/MGL2 is selectively required for the differentiation of Th2 cells as well as for the maintenance of metabolic homeostasis. Dr. Kumamoto joined Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and the Center for Immunity and Inflammation (CII) in 2017, where he studies the role of dendritic cell subsets in adaptive immunity and inflammation.



MURIEL LAMBERT, PhD
Professor

Dr. Muriel Lambert received her Ph.D. degree from Northwestern University. Dr. Lambert continued her training as a post-doctoral fellow at Harvard University, followed by a post- doctoral fellowship in the Department of Dermatology at Yale University School of Medicine. Dr. Lambert has been an NIH funded investigator whose research focus has been on the role of DNA repair in genomic stability in genetic diseases defective in DNA repair. She is particularly interested in the underlying mechanism for the hematological disorder, Fanconi anemia (FA), characterized by defective DNA repair, genomic instability and a marked predisposition to develop cancer. Her laboratory has demonstrated that the structural protein, non-erythroid alpha-spectrin (αIISp), is present in cell nuclei where it plays a role in DNA repair, telomere maintenance and chromosomal stability. Her lab has shown that there is a deficiency in αIISp in FA cells due to its decreased stability and this leads to a number of the phenotypic defects observed in these cells. Current research is focusing on methods to reverse the instability or breakdown of αIISp in FA cells so as to enhance genomic stability and reverse the defects in the cellular phenotype observed. Dr. Lambert is course director of a widely subscribed course, Cellular Pathology, as well as the course, DNA Repair in Health and Disease. She is a recipient of the Excellence in Teaching Award for the Rutgers Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences from the New Jersey Health Foundation. She is an Associate Editor for the journal Experimental Biology and Medicine.



W. CLARK LAMBERT, MD, PhD
Professor, Emeritus Director, Dermatopathology

Dr. W. Clark Lambert received his BA degree from Wesleyan University in 1964 and M.D. &, Ph.D. degrees in Experimental Pathology from Thomas Jefferson University in 1969 & 1970. Dr. Lambert completed his residencies in Pathology at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in 1974 and in Dermatology at Yale-New Haven Hospital in 1976. Dr. Lambert also worked as a Research Associate in Laboratory of Molecular Genetics at the National Institutes of Health (1971-1973). Dr. Lambert had worked as Assistant-Associate-Professor (with tenure) in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School from 1976 to 2011. Dr. Lambert has five board certifications; over 300 publications in peer reviewed journals, chapters in multiple textbooks, and two books edited; three associate editorships, multiple editorial boards; research grants, etc. Dr. Lambert’s research interests include xeroderma pigmentosum, cell cycle control mechanisms, mathematical biology, multiple areas of dermatopathology.



CHEN LIU, MD, PhD
Professor and Chair;
Departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School
Chief of Pathology Service;
University Hospital at Newark and RWJ University Hospital at New Brunswick
Interim Chief;
Division of Cancer Pathology, Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) Director of the Liver Pathology

Dr. Liu is a board-certified GI/liver pathologist and an NIH-funded liver disease investigator. As a physician scientist, he is an expert in viral hepatitis, liver cancer immunotherapy, graft-versus- the host disease and cancer epigenetics. His research team has made significant contributions to the understanding of virus or alcohol-induced carcinogenesis, cancer metastasis, cancer biomarker discovery and novel therapies using small molecules and immunotherapy. His research work has been continuously funded by NIH and other funding agencies. Dr. Liu has published more than 220 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and has 5 patents and pending applications. As a GI/liver pathologist, he provides expert consultations for both adult and pediatric patients.


Dongfang Liu, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Dongfang Liu, PhD recently joined the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and the Center for Immunity and Inflammation as an Associate Professor. In 2012, Dr. Liu was recruited to Baylor College of Medicine as a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and Department of Pathology & Immunology, before joining Houston Methodist Hospital (a teaching hospital affiliated with Weill Cornell Medical College) as an assistant professor in 2015. In 2018, Dr. Liu was promoted to an Associate Professor in Houston Methodist Research Institute. Dr. Liu did his postdoctoral training on natural killer (NK) cells at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) in National Institutes of Health (NIH) from 2005 to 2011. After completing the postdoctoral training, he joined Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard in 2011 as a senior research scientist, where he worked on HIV-specific CTL dysfunction with a focus on PD-1 in HIV-specific CTLs. Dr. Liu’s current research is primarily focused on the immunobiology of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T and NK cells, immunoreceptors, CAR immunotherapy, and HIV-specific CTLs in chronic HIV and its related malignancies, with a focus on immunological synapse biology and its clinical applications. Dr. Liu’s research is supported by several NIH grants, including an RO1 and three R21 grants.

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NEENA MIRANI, MD
Professor, Pathology-Ophthalmology & Head & Neck Surgery Director, Cytopathology

Practicing pathologist for 39 years with expertise and experience in head & neck pathology, ophthalmic pathology, and cytopathology, and providing consultative service in those specialties. Very much interested in teaching to medical students and post graduate trainees. Involved in research projects, published several papers in peer reviewed journals and mentored many abstract/posters. Lectured as an invited speaker in several national pathology meetings.



STEPHEN PETERS, MD
Associate Professor
Director, Division of Anatomic Pathology

Dr. Peters has been practicing general surgical pathology since 1983. Dr. Peters is interested in all subspecialty areas of surgical pathology and cytology with particular interest in breast, GI, GU, GYN, soft tissue, orthopedic and skin pathology. Dr. Peters’ contributions have been in the area of frozen section technique where he has developed the Precision Cryoembedding System. This system of techniques used for precisely embedding frozen section specimens is now being used around the world. Dr. Peters has authored a textbook “A Practical Guide to Frozen section Technique” which defines and elucidates techniques used in preparing frozen sections into a didactic and organized subject matter.



NICHOLAS PONZIO, PhD
Professor and Master Educator

Nicholas M. Ponzio, Ph.D. is Professor in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and Rutgers School of Graduate Studies. A graduate of Seton Hall University (B.A. and M.S.) and SUNY Downstate Medical Center (Ph.D.), he performed postdoctoral studies at Albert Einstein College of Medicine (Bronx, NY) and New York University Medical Center (New York, NY). Prior to coming to Rutgers, Dr. Ponzio was a faculty member at Northwestern University Medical School (Chicago, IL). He has made numerous and significant contributions to the educational programs of these universities in their medical, dental, and graduate school training programs. His teaching and mentoring skills were recognized by his induction into the Stuart D. Cook, M.D. Master Educators’ Guild of Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences in 2003, and by numerous excellence in teaching and research awards. Dr. Ponzio has maintained an active research program in medically-related areas for his entire career at Northwestern and Rutgers, including investigation of the etiology and immunotherapy of B cell lymphomas, therapeutic use of human umbilical cord blood stem cells, and immunological aspects of Autism Spectrum Disorders. Most recently, Dr. Ponzio has also focused his efforts to areas of interprofessional education to enhance interdisciplinary activities among students in the health and science related training programs at Rutgers University. One such ongoing initiative is development of a course titled Communicating Science. This course teaches graduate and post-graduate trainees how to communicate their research clearly, accurately, and understandably, while emphasizing its value, significance, and potential benefits to diverse audiences.



LEROY SHARER, MD
Professor
Director, Division of Neuropathology

Leroy R. Sharer, M.D., is a graduate of Cornell University Medical College (now Weill Cornell). He did a residency in Anatomic Pathology at New York Hospital-Cornell and a fellowship in Neuropathology at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He is certified in Anatomic Pathology and Neuropathology by the American Board of Pathology. His research interests have included neuropathologic changes in children with AIDS, animal models of HIV-1 infection, and neuropathology of infectious diseases. He is a recipient of the Meritorious Service Award from the American Association of Neuropathologists (the AANP), the most prestigious award given by this national professional organization.



SUKWINDER SINGH, PhD
Assistant Professor
Technical Director of the Flow Cytometry & Immunology Core Laboratory

As the technical director of the Flow Cytometry and Immunology Core Laboratory, Dr. Singh oversees the day to day operations of the laboratory. The core facility is one of many core facilities under the Office of Research at New Jersey Medical School that provides the use of highly technical instrumentation for use by researchers. The Flow Cytometry and Immunology Core Laboratory is a dual core. The main core is the Flow Cytometry portion that houses five flow cytometry analyzers, two cell sorters and an imaging flow cytometer. The other portion of the core provides support services in the form of clinical sample processing and shipping for clinical research trials being conducted at NJMS. The instrumentation and services of the core facility are available to all Rutgers faculty and surrounding schools of higher education and industry. Please click on the link below for more info on the facility: Faculty



GEORGE STUDZINSKI, MD, PhD
Professor, Emeritus

Dr. Studzinski has over 50 years’ experience in cancer research, in the last 30 years focusing on the anti-neoplastic effects of Vitamin D. In studies mostly supported by the National Cancer Institute, the laboratory has advanced the understanding of the signaling of differentiation, and thus normalization of the malignant behavior of human Acute Myeloid Leukemia cells. Major findings included the role of cell cycle inhibitor p27Kip1 in differentiation-related growth arrest, and the participation of the MAPK signaling pathway in differentiation and cell death by apoptosis induced by vitamin D analogs (VDAs). Current studies are translational, with plans for a clinical trial of VDAs in AML.



QING WANG, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor
Director, Hematology & Flow Cytometry Laboratory

Dr. Wang is a board-certified Anatomic and Clinical pathologist and Hematology pathologist, who serves as medical director of Hematology and Coagulation Laboratory and Flow Cytometry Laboratory at University Hospital, NJ. Dr. Wang has expertise in hematopathology, coagulation and flow cytometry analysis, with a professional interests in morphologic evaluation, immunophenotyping and molecular diagnosis of hematolymphoid malignancies, including leukemia, lymphoma and clinical flow cytometry. Dr. Wang also serves as co-investigator on several NIH-funded and university-funded studies. As faculty she is also dedicated to teaching medical students, residents and fellows, and serves as thesis committee member of graduate students of mater or PhD degree candidates at Rutgers University.



BEI YOU, PhD, FACMG
Assistant Professor
Assistant Director, Clinical Cytogenetic Laboratory

Dr. Bei You is ABMGG Board certified in clinical cytogenetics and clinical molecular genetics. Her primary professional focus uses state of the art cytogenetic techniques to identify tumor markers and characteristic chromosome aberrations that provide evidence for the clinical diagnosis, classification and targeted therapy of solid tumors and hematologic disorders. She also specializes in detection of constitutional chromosome abnormalities and germline mutations. The CAP and CLIA accredited Cytogenetic Laboratory performs chromosome analysis and FISH tests for prenatal and postnatal diagnosis as well as hematology/oncology diagnostic services.