• share
• favorite_border

The 2015 AACC Annual Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo, the leading annual event for laboratory medicine, will open on Sunday, July 26, in Atlanta, Georgia. This year’s meeting will host more than 400 educational sessions on topics ranging from personalized medicine and infectious diseases to point-of-care and laboratory-developed tests, and will feature more than 200 new cutting edge diagnostic products.

• share
• favorite_border

Biomatrica, Inc. announced today the launch of DNAgard® Saliva HT, a new saliva DNA collection device optimized for use with automated laboratory DNA testing instruments.

• share
• favorite_border

ACCU-SCOPE Inc. is pleased to introduce the EXC-500 Microscope Series for clinical, laboratory, research and fluorescence applications. The EXC-500 offers best-in-class performance and value. Its newly designed NIS Infinity optical system provides sharp, crisp images via Plan achromat or S-Plan APO objectives. The EXC-500's modular design allows for simple integrations with fluorescence, phase contrast, polarization and darkfield to provide users with a system that can scale as their needs evolve.

• share
• favorite_border

In only 30 seconds, it eliminates deadly surface pathogens on handheld devices, shared tools and electronics.

• share
• favorite_border

Marker Test Diagnostics, Inc., a leading international supplier to the drug testing industry, announced today that the company has completed a corporate relocation for its U.S. headquarters from Leesburg, Va. to Chandler, Az.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, is pleased to announce that it has been honored with a 2015 ASAE Power of A Gold Award for Lab Tests Online.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, is pleased to announce that the impact factor of its journal, Clinical Chemistry, has increased to 7.9 in the 2014 Thomson Reuters Journal Citation Reports. This increase places Clinical Chemistry in the top 3% of all academic journals and reflects the significant influence of the research it publishes on laboratory medicine and patient care.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, is seeking applications for editor-in-chief of a new journal: The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine: An AACC Publication. Set to launch in 2016, this international, peer-reviewed publication will showcase applied research on clinically relevant laboratory topics as well as commentary on the practice of clinical chemistry and laboratory medicine.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, is pleased to announce the upcoming launch of a new journal: The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine: An AACC Publication. Set to debut in 2016, this international, peer-reviewed publication will showcase applied research on clinically relevant laboratory topics as well as commentary on the practice of clinical chemistry and laboratory medicine.

• share
• favorite_border

Today AACC released a position statement endorsing efforts within the healthcare community to improve patient outcomes by personalizing medical care. The statement emphasizes the central role that innovative laboratory tests play in precision medicine, and stresses the need for policymakers and insurers to adopt policies that ensure access to and appropriate reimbursement for these tests so that patients can benefit from targeted treatments.

• share
• favorite_border

Cannabis plus alcohol is one of the most frequently detected drug combinations in car accidents, yet the interaction of these two compounds is still poorly understood. A study appearing online today in Clinical Chemistry, the journal of AACC, shows for the first time that the simultaneous use of alcohol and cannabis produces significantly higher blood concentrations of cannabis’s main psychoactive constituent, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), as well as THC’s primary active metabolite, 11-hydroxy-THC (11-OH-THC), than cannabis use alone.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, is pleased to announce that it has received three 2015 Hermes Creative Awards. These awards recognize the association for the exceptional writing and design of its news publications and website, which help laboratory medicine professionals worldwide stay informed about important issues in the field and find solutions to challenging patient health problems.

• share
• favorite_border

One of the biggest difficulties faced by worldwide programs aimed at eliminating malaria is that the tests they use are not sensitive enough to detect all people who have the disease and need treatment. A study appearing online today in Clinical Chemistry, the journal of AACC, shows that a new test known as capture and ligation probe-PCR (CLIP-PCR) could diagnose the malaria cases that would typically escape detection and lead to new infections.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC is pleased to announce that Lauren Kramer was named vice president of education and meetings, effective May 4. Prior to joining AACC, Kramer served as director of meetings at the International Council of Ophthalmology, an organization that represents more than 135 professional associations of ophthalmologists worldwide and sponsors the World Opthalmology Congress (WOC). Kramer played an integral role in growing the WOC by increasing the attendance at WOC2014 in Tokyo from 13,500 to 19,000 and introducing new interactive educational delivery methods that will be implemented at the 2016 Congress.

• share
• favorite_border

Today AACC sent formal comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) addressing CMS’ proposal to enforce more stringent regulatory requirements for testing with blood glucose monitors. AACC endorses CMS’ effort to improve patient care by ensuring these devices are used appropriately, but recommends creating a transition period that would give hospitals sufficient time to adjust to the new requirements and prevent the disruption of rapid, point-of-care blood glucose results for patients.

• share
• favorite_border

Today AACC sent formal comments to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the agency’s proposed regulation of next-generation sequencing tests. AACC appreciates FDA’s efforts to seek input from the healthcare community before developing new policy in this area, but is concerned that FDA regulation of next-generation sequencing could impede the advancement of precision medicine.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC and its academy, the National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry (NACB), are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2015 AACC and NACB Awards, which honor laboratory medicine professionals worldwide for advancing the field of clinical laboratory testing. Through these annual awards programs, AACC strives to support laboratory medicine practitioners in all stages of their careers and to build awareness of the essential contribution made by all laboratorians in today’s complex, changing healthcare environment.

• share
• favorite_border

Today AACC sent formal comments to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) addressing FDA’s proposal for oversight of laboratory developed tests. AACC shares FDA’s goal of improving the safety and effectiveness of these crucial tests, but recommends that the agency protect patient access to the tests by limiting its oversight to high risk laboratory developed tests. AACC additionally recommends that the agency broaden its criteria exempting tests for rare diseases from its review process, and re-evaluate its proposal to require the discontinuation or FDA review of tests that fulfill unmet clinical needs once the agency clears or approves a similar commercial test.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC is pleased to announce that Loretta L. Doan, PhD, has assumed the position of vice president of policy and global affairs effective today. Prior to joining AACC, Doan served as director of science policy at the Endocrine Society, an organization representing more than 18,000 scientists and clinicians. At the Endocrine Society, she led a diverse portfolio of science policy initiatives that advanced the field of endocrinology, including a program focused on the standardization of hormone assays.

• share
• favorite_border

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a revised version of the Newborn Screening Saves Lives Reauthorization Act of 2013 yesterday, finalizing Congressional reauthorization of the legislation. AACC commends Congress for approving this bipartisan legislation, which will enable the continuation and advancement of pediatric testing programs that help thousands of infants receive life-saving treatments every year.

• share
• favorite_border

Today AACC released a position statement in response to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) proposal for oversight of laboratory developed tests, asserting that most laboratory developed tests are sufficiently regulated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and that too much additional FDA oversight could prevent labs from helping underserved patient populations.

• share
• favorite_border

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued its long-awaited proposal on October 3 for overseeing laboratory developed tests—medical tests that are created and used within a single lab, and often developed to fulfill unmet clinical needs. AACC is concerned that this guidance could hinder the ability of labs to provide physicians with the vital information they need to treat patients, and has joined the American Medical Association (AMA), American Hospital Association (AHA), and 48 other major healthcare organizations in requesting that FDA withdraw the draft guidance documents and re-issue them through the rulemaking process required under the Administrative Procedures Act.

• share
• favorite_border

Clinical laboratory testing ensures that thousands of infants receive life-saving treatments every year, yet certain pediatric testing programs could lose their funding if Congress does not finalize the Newborn Screening Saves Lives Reauthorization Act of 2013. On October 14, AACC will host a congressional briefing to discuss how this legislation could save even more children from death and disability by enabling advances in pediatric laboratory testing to continue.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC is pleased to announce that Patricia M. Jones, PhD, DABCC, FACB, has been elected to serve on the AACC Board as president-elect beginning in January 2015, followed by successive terms as the association’s 67th president in 2016 and past president in 2017. The AACC membership also elected two new members to the association’s Board of Directors and two new members to the Nominating Committee who will take office at the start of next year.

• share
• favorite_border

Now that the Ebola virus has arrived in the U.S., the ability of clinical laboratories to quickly identify patients who need treatment and require isolation will play a critical role in preventing an outbreak. To help labs prepare for this, AACC will host a webinar on October 7 featuring Nancy E. Cornish, MD, a medical officer with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Laboratory Science and Standards.

• share
• favorite_border

On September 10, AACC will host a webinar with Alberto Gutierrez, PhD, director of the Office of In Vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health in the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health to explain the agency’s long-awaited proposal for oversight of laboratory developed tests (LDTs). LDTs play an integral role in diagnosing a wide range of medical conditions, including congenital disorders, infectious diseases, drug abuse, and cancer.

• share
• favorite_border

Nearly 20,000 medical professionals and healthcare leaders gathered for AACC’s 65th Annual Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo in Chicago from July 27–31. The meeting featured never-before-seen breakthroughs in diagnostic research and technology that will advance medicine and get patients the treatment they need.

• share
• favorite_border

From 29 – 31 July 2014, the Swiss quality pump and valve manufacturer Diener Precision Pumps presents its precision pumps at the AACC 2014 Annual Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo in Chicago, Illinois (USA). The AACC Annual Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo is the world’s largest gathering for laboratory medicine. Double Ended – Dual Dispensing Piston Pumps and the Silencer Gear Pump Series will be the main focus of Diener Precision Pumps’ AACC appearance.

• share
• favorite_border

One of the major revolutions taking place in healthcare is the rise of personalized medicine, which is the practice of using genomic and other molecular analyses to tailor medical treatments to a patient’s individual biology. Personalized diagnostics—laboratory analyses that inform the practice of personalized medicine—will play a major role in the lab’s future. This fall, AACC’s first ever virtual conference will feature the latest science in this exciting field and the novel technologies driving it forward, all in a convenient format that people can access without leaving their offices or homes.

• share
• favorite_border

As one of the 10 largest medical exhibitions in the U.S., the 2014 AACC Annual Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo is the place where breakthrough innovations in clinical testing and patient care are introduced to the healthcare world. This year, many of the trailblazing products displayed by the Expo’s 650 exhibitors will include the latest diagnostic technology in the field of mobile health.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC is pleased to announce the recipients of the AACC 2014 Corporate Supporter Awards. Each year, AACC recognizes the companies and organizations that generously support the association through sponsorships, advertising, and exhibiting. These significant contributions make it possible for AACC to improve patient care by fostering research, innovation, and professional excellence in the field of laboratory medicine.

• share
• favorite_border

The groundbreaking scientific studies featured at the 2014 AACC Annual Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo will include research on a blood test for Alzheimer’s that uses biochip technology, a new test to diagnose colon cancer early, a more accurate method for determining multiple myeloma prognosis, a less stressful test for sleep apnea, and the development of a bank of biospecimens from pregnant women that could prove crucial for women’s health research.

• share
• favorite_border

At the world’s largest conference and exhibit for laboratory medicine, AACC will showcase the cutting edge science and technology shaping the future of medical testing and patient care. This year, the meeting will include the latest news about mobile health, big data, and infectious disease testing, among many other major healthcare topics.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, unveiled an updated brand identity today that reflects the organization’s commitment to help laboratory professionals adapt to the changing healthcare environment and continue to do what they do best: provide vital insight to physicians, so patients get the care they need.

• share
• favorite_border

AACC released a position statement on newborn screening, the practice of testing every newborn for medical conditions that cause disabilities, developmental delays, or death.

• share
• favorite_border

On January 13, the New York State (NYS) Department of Health issued a directive limiting the ways in which NYS medical laboratories can use blood glucose meters to help patients. Although AACC shares the Department’s desire to ensure that blood glucose devices are used safely and appropriately, the association is concerned that this policy may impede the delivery of quality patient care and advises the Department to rescind it.

• share
• favorite_border

In March of this year, a team of Georgetown University scientists published research showing that, for the first time ever, a blood test has the potential to predict Alzheimer’s disease before patients start showing symptoms. AACC is pleased to announce that a late-breaking session at the 2014 AACC Annual Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo in Chicago will expand upon this groundbreaking research and discuss why it could be the key to curing this devastating illness.

• share
• favorite_border

In January, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released draft guidance proposing separate performance and accuracy criteria for over-the-counter blood glucose meters used in the home and prescription blood glucose meters used in hospitals. AACC supports FDA’s initiative to improve the quality of these devices and enhance patient care, but recommends revising this draft guidance to ensure that it does not unnecessarily increase the regulatory burden and costs on the healthcare system.

• share
• favorite_border

On May 7, AACC will host a webinar about the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014, a new law signed by the president on April 1 that will make the most significant changes to medical test reimbursement that clinical laboratories have seen in 3 decades.

• share
• favorite_border

In November 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ordered the company 23andMe to stop offering its direct-to-consumer DNA testing service, which provided individuals with $99 assessments of their genetic risk for almost 200 disorders. A thought-stimulating opinion piece published in Clinical Chemistry, the journal of AACC, now examines whether this move by FDA is a violation of the First Amendment, or a necessary step to protect consumers.

• share
• favorite_border

Though the 11 most popular hospital urine pregnancy tests perform well in the first month after conception, a new study published in Clinical Chemistry, the journal of AACC, reveals the alarming statistic that nine of these tests become significantly more likely to produce false-negative results after the 5th to 7th week of pregnancy.

• share
• favorite_border

On March 19, AACC will host a webinar with FDA division director Courtney Lias, PhD, about FDA’s new draft guidance proposing separate performance and accuracy criteria for over-the-counter blood glucose meters used in the home and prescription point-of-care blood glucose meters used in the hospital.

• share
• favorite_border

The President’s budget proposes cuts to laboratory reimbursement that could have a significant impact on patient health by hindering the development and implementation of new technologies, reducing the number of laboratories serving underserved populations, decreasing patient access to such vital tests as hepatitis C and cancer screenings, and diminishing the quality of testing.

• share
• favorite_border

On February 26, AACC will host a webinar with Alberto Gutierrez, PhD, director of the Office of In Vitro Diagnostics in the Center for Devices and Radiological Health at FDA to discuss FDA’s guidance on in vitro diagnostic products labeled for research use only (RUO) or investigational use only (IUO).

• share
• favorite_border

AACC is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2014 AACC Awards. Each year, AACC recognizes individuals from around the world for their superior contributions to the field of laboratory medicine with its awards program, which aims to encourage excellence within the profession and raise awareness about the importance of clinical laboratory science to improving healthcare.

• share
• favorite_border

Today, HHS announced a ruling that allows patients direct access to their completed test reports. AACC supports this new ruling and applauds the ongoing efforts of HHS to empower patients to be informed healthcare consumers.

• share
• favorite_border

On January 29, the U.S. Senate passed the Newborn Screening Saves Lives Reauthorization Act of 2013 (S.1417) by unanimous consent. AACC applauds the Senate’s approval of this legislation, which is integral to improving children’s health, and urges the U.S. House of Representatives to pass it as well.

• share
• favorite_border

A new Q&A in the “Advancing Women’s Health” issue of Clinical Chemistry, the journal of AACC, explores the ethics of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, a form of genetic testing that has already made it possible for parents to conceive a child who is a donor match for a sick relative, who shares their minor disability (such as deafness), or to select gender.

• share
• favorite_border

The symptoms of heart disease are often less obvious in women than in men, and as a result, some experts have recommended changing current medical practice and using separate criteria to identify the disease and predict its progression in women. However, new findings in the “Advancing Women’s Health” issue of Clinical Chemistry, the journal of AACC, suggest that sex-specific criteria do not improve the prognostic accuracy of blood tests for diagnosing heart disease.

• share
• favorite_border

Two new papers in the “Advancing Women’s Health” issue of Clinical Chemistry, the journal of AACC, show for the first time that measuring the amount of certain protein fragments and microRNAs in a woman’s blood and breast tissue might enable the early diagnosis of breast cancer or prediction of its metastasis, respectively.