Peggy Wenk here.

Lately, I've been asked by several people to suggest workshops,
teleconferences, etc. that they could use to fulfill the continuing
education (CE) requirements to keep their Qualification in
Immunohistochemistry (QIHC). (After passing the QIHC
practical exam, the Qualification is good for 5 years. If
they want to "renew" the qualification, they must send in
$50 to ASCP Board of Registry, plus documentation of
30 hours of CE in immunohistochemistry in the previous
5 years.)

A real quick look around at various organizations has
found the following for the remainder of 2001:

(Disclaimer: I can't guarantee that ASCP will accept
all these as acceptable CE. If you are uncertain, contact
ASCP Board of Registry at 301-262-6221.)

(If anyone knows of any other workshop, talk, teleconference,
etc., please pass it along to Histonet. Thanks.)

+ + + + + + + + +

NSH TELECONFERENCES
Contact NSH at 301-262-6221 or http://www.nsh.org/education
$90 per session. Unlimited number of participants.
Wednesdays, 1-2 pm Eastern Time.
Adjust for time zones and day light savings
Receive 1 hour CE.

June 20, 2001
HIER vs. EIER - IHC
Sheron Lear, HT(ASCP)HTL, QIHC
Discussing heat vs. enzymes in antigen recovery.

Dec. 19, 2001
Troubleshooting Pre-Treatment Mechanisms for Immunohistochemisty
Jaime Koob, HTL(ASCP)
Role of fixation, processing, sectioning, drying, digestions, HIER
and control slides in IHC staining.

+ + + + + + +

ASCP TELECONFERENCES
Contact ASCP at 800-621-4142, press 1, then x1260
or http://www.ascp.org/programs
Fridays, 12-1 pm CT (Adjust for time zone and daylight savings)
$170 without tape, $185 with tape per session. Unlimited participants.
Receive 1 hour CE
(NOTE: Many are geared towards pathologists and residents, so
discuss is more of diagnosis than "how-to" for staining. Still, would
be helpful information for histotechs to know what the pathologist
is looking for when ordering these stains.)

June 8, 2001
Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy in Patients with Breast Carcinoma
Carol Reynolds, MD, FASCP
Includes discussion of cytokeratin IHC staining.

June 22, 2001
Pediatric Soft Tissue Tumors: Common and Unusual Types
Margaret H. Collins, MD
IHC with cytogenetic and molecular findings for rhabomyosarcoma,
Ewing's sarcoma, congenital firbrosarcoma, lipoblastoma, etc.

Oct. 5, 2001
Small Round Cell Tumors in Adults: A Difficult and Important
Differential Diagnosis
Brian P. Rubin, MD, PhD
Using IHC, cytogenetics and molecular pathology to distinguish
small round cell tumors, synovial sarcoma, desmoplastic small
cell tumor, Ewing's sarcoma, Merkel cell sarcoma, olfactory
neuroblastoma, mesenchymal chondrosarcoma, and round cell
liposarcoma.

Oct. 12, 2001
Technical Standardization of Prognostic Factors in Breast Cancer
Carlos E. Gentry, HT(ASCP)
(Geared to histotechs)
For ER, PgR and Her2 - developing assays, methods of standardization
and validation, technical issues

Nov. 9, 2001
Pathology of the Pituitary Gland and Sellar Region
Bernd W. Scheithauer, MD, FASCP
Identify variants of pituitary adenoma and hyperplasia using
routine histology, IHC and EM.

Dec. 7, 2001
Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Histologic Diagnosis and
Differential Diagnosis
Zachary D. Goodman, MD, PhD, FASCP
Role of IHC in the diagnosis and differential diagnosis of
hepatocellular carcinoma.

+ + + + + + + +

TELECONFERENCE NETWORK OF TEXAS
Contact San Antonio at 800-9828-TNT or
http://aisweb.uthscsa.edu/about_tnt.htm
click on programs, then click on histotechnology
(NOTE: there is NO "www")
Third Friday, 12 - 1 pm CT (adjust for time zone and daylight savings)
$95 per session for 5 participants, each additional participant is $15)
1 hour CE

Sept. 21, 2001
Immunohistochemistry on Cytology Specimens and Previously
Stained Slides.
Rodney Miller, MD
Problems encountered when doing IHC stains on cytology
slides and histology slides already previously stained.

Oct. 19, 2001
Immunohistochemistry: Application, Troubleshooting and
New Technologies
Nancy L. Shellhorn, HT(ASCP)
Impact of fixation on IHC, and troubleshooting hints.

+ + + + + + + + +

BIOLOGICAL STAIN COMMISSION
Birmingham, Alabama
Winfrey Hotel
Saturday June 9, 2001
2 NSH approved workshops = 3 hours CE each
Cost: FREE to everyone
Contact BSC at dpenney@biostains.org

8:00 am - 11:30 am
Control Blocks and Tissues for Histology and Immunology
Peggy A. Wenk, HTL(ASCP)

1:00 pm - 4:30 pm
The Effects of Fixation in Antigen Retrieval on IHC Staining
of Paraffin Sections
Russell Meyers, PhD

+ + + + + + + + +

NSH SYMPOSIUM
Sept. 22-27, 2001
Charlotte, NC
Contact NSH at 301-262-6221 or at
http://www.nsh.org/conventions
click on program to see description and speakers
Cost:
1/2 day workshop = $40 NSH member, $80 non-NSH member
     = 3 hours CE
Full day workshop = $80 NSH member, $160 non-NSH member
     = 6 hours CE

Saturday, Sept. 22
8-11:30 am
- EGFR: Molecular Pathology, IHC, and its use in Patient Therapies
- Non-isotopic In-Situ PCR for Technologists by Technologists
- Interdisciplinary Techniques for the Study of Bone Pathophysiology:
Quantitative Analysis, Tinctorial and IHC and Molecular Biology

Saturday, Sept. 22
1-4:30 pm
- Basic IHC Techniques - Wet Workshop
- IHC for Beginners

Sunday, Sept. 23
9:30-10:30 am - 1 hour CE
- Cytokine IHC: A Cautionary Tale from Wonderland - Chris M. van der Loos,
PhD

Sunday, Sept. 23
1-4:30 pm
- Understanding Cancer - A Fundamental Perspective (includes discussion
on histology, cytology, IHC and molecular pathology stains)
- Prognostic Markers in Breast Cancer
- Control Blocks and Tissues for Histology and Immunology
- Cancer and Angiogenesis: The Roles of Histology and Image Analysis
in Drug Discovery

Monday, Sept. 24
8-11:30 am
- The Holistic Approach to Antigen Retrieval
- Breast Cancer from Surgery to Slide
- Recognition and Relevance of Autoantibody Patterns in Tissue Sections
- Common Sense and Helpful Hints for the Histology/Immunology Lab

Monday, Sept. 24
1-4:30 pm
- Immunohistochemical Staining and its use in Hematopathology
- IHC from the Ground Up
- Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) and other Markers for Cell Proliferation
in Animal Research using Capillary Gap Immunohistochemical Methods
- Tissue Array: Beneficial Technology for Research and Histology
- VIR Seminars - each talk about 45 minutes
     - Basic IHC
     - Cytochemical Detection of Apoptotic Cell Death
     - Reproducible HER2/neu Staining for Breast Tumor Specimens:
          Standardization Protocols for Manual and Automated Staining
     - Soy Phytoestrogens: Identifying Effects on the Breast and Uterus

Tuesday, Sept. 25
8 am - 4:30 pm
- Troubleshooting the IHC procedure with Emphasis on Technical and
Interpretive Predicaments

Tuesday, Sept. 25
8-11:30 am
- Let's Try to Improve These Immunos
- Role of Immunohistochemistry in the Evaluation of Neurodegenerative
Disease

Tuesday, Sept. 25
1-4:30 pm
- Immunoenzymatic Double Staining Methods: A Practical Overview
- Basic IHC

Wednesday, Sept. 26
8-11:30 am
- Diagnosing and Treating Breast Cancer: IHC, FISH and Herceptin:
The Her-2/neu Protein and Gene Story
- The Conversion of Special Stain Techniques to IHC Techniques

Wednesday, Sept. 26
1-4:30 pm
- The Utilization of IHC and ISH in the Identification of Infectious Agents
- ISH Techniques and Molecular Pathology
- Cell Proliferation and Apoptosis: What Does it Mean?

+ + + + + + + +

That's all for now, folks. . . .

Peggy A. Wenk, HTL(ASCP)
William Beaumont Hospital
Royal Oak, MI 48073