MCW Pathology & Laboratory Medicine - Flow Cytometry

Flow cytometry is an important diagnostic tool in the evaluation of leukemias and lymphomas.

The Flow Cytometry Laboratory at the Medical College of Wisconsin/Wisconsin Diagnostic Laboratories is directed by Dr. Steven Kroft and serves patients in the Froedtert Health system as well as local and regional hospital facilities.

The hematopathology team has expertise in interpreting sophisticated flow cytometry studies for the diagnosis of acute leukemia, myelodysplastic syndrome, plasma cell myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria; and the management of these disorders following treatment with our sensitive, minimal residual disease assessment. Our team uses an approach termed cluster analysis to identify clonal abnormal populations via flow cytometry.

Our flow cytometry service at MCW is a busy service, performing over 4200 studies annually. Our laboratory performs 8-color flow cytometry and is transitioning to a 10-color system. Flow cytometry is performed on many different specimen types, including blood, bone marrow, lymph nodes, cerebrospinal fluid, and extranodal sites.

We service a growing, high-volume leukemia and lymphoma and bone marrow transplant patient population at MCW, supporting the physicians in MCW’s Division of Hematology Oncology. We serve a significant number of patients on clinical trials and undergoing advanced, novel therapies, such as CAR-T cells and targeted immunotherapy.

Our pathology residents and fellows rotate through the flow cytometry laboratory/service and therefore, teaching flow cytometry is an important activity for our hematopathology team.