Guidance for pathology consultation requests

Optimized processes enable timely, expert results

We value our clients and aspire to offer the highest level of service, which is why both the pathology report and your Mayo Clinic Laboratories account number must accompany pathology consultation requests. Your account number is essential for reporting results and billing. Please contact Mayo Clinic Laboratories if a new account number is required. Pathology reports help our lab positively identify patients and match specimens to orders. Minimum information required for the pathology report includes:

  • Patient name and date of birth
  • Date of service
  • Gross description
  • Slide(s) and/or Block ID(s)
  • Client pathology accessioning number
  • Consult question(s) to be answered

The consultative process, simplified

Pathology consult services

In this “Hot Topic,” Joaquín García, M.D., highlights the value of Mayo Clinic’s pathology consultation practice and provides guidance for optimizing the consult experience with Mayo Clinic Laboratories.

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Additional guidance

Supplementary information can help our pathologists provide answers. We recommend including a cover letter or notes from the medical record that briefly summarize pertinent findings, as well as relevant lab work and radiographic or imaging studies. Consultation order requests with missing or discrepant information may be delayed and possibly rejected. Please contact Mayo Clinic Laboratories to promptly resolve any issues.

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Download our consultation guidelines

Comprehensive results, detailed answers

Our consultation reports often include a pathologic diagnosis. Reports occasionally address staging or surgical margin questions. If deemed appropriate, multiple specimens and/or cases may be reported. If slides are included in the submission, our report indicates which slides were reviewed. Unrelated material may not be reviewed.

Learn more about how to order these evaluations at your institution.