2nd Workshop on Digital and Computational Pathology

Digital transformation is reshaping the practice of Anatomic Pathology, creating new opportunities for clinical care, education, and research. This presentation will discuss the Brazilian Society of Pathology's (SBP) perspectives on collaboration with the Brazilian Association for Digital and Computational Pathology (ABPDC), highlighting joint initiatives in education, dissemination of best practices, validation and responsible adoption of emerging technologies, and professional training. The goal is to strengthen collaboration between both organizations, fostering innovation, diagnostic quality, patient safety, and the continued advancement of pathology in the era of digital medicine.

Dr. Gerônimo Jr. is a pathologist who earned his medical degree from the Federal University of Piauí (UFPI) and completed his residency in Pathology at São Paulo State University (UNESP – Botucatu). He holds a Master's degree in Health Sciences from UFPI and serves as Director of the LAPAC Laboratory in Teresina, Brazil. He is currently President of the Brazilian Society of Pathology (SBP) for the 2025–2026 term.

This lecture will discuss the application of artificial intelligence in the histopathological diagnosis of breast cancer, highlighting its potential to support diagnostic practice and precision medicine. The presentation will also feature the results of an international study evaluating software for HER2 protein expression assessment in breast cancer, conducted with the participation of the speaker.

Dr. Juliana Freitas earned her medical degree from the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) and completed her residency in Pathology at the University of São Paulo (USP). She holds both M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in Human Pathology from the UFBA/Fiocruz Graduate Program. She is currently a Professor of Pathology at the Faculty of Medicine of Bahia (UFBA) and leads the Breast Pathology Team at the IMAGEPAT Laboratory in Salvador, Brazil. Her work focuses on Breast Pathology, Digital Pathology, and the application of Artificial Intelligence to histopathological diagnosis.

This lecture will discuss how artificial intelligence is transforming oncologic pathology by enabling the inference of molecular biomarkers directly from digitized histopathological images. Recent advances in predicting alterations such as homologous recombination deficiency (HRD), mismatch repair deficiency (MMR), and actionable mutations will be presented, highlighting the potential of these technologies to expand access to precision medicine, optimize diagnostic workflows, and support therapeutic decision-making. The lecture will also address the challenges of clinical validation, model generalization, and the integration of AI into routine digital pathology practice.

Dr. Israel Tojal holds a B.Sc. in Computer Science from Universidade Paulista (2001), a specialization in Bioinformatics from the Brazilian National Laboratory for Scientific Computing (LNCC, 2003), a Ph.D. in Sciences from the University of São Paulo (USP, 2009), and completed postdoctoral training at Rockefeller University, USA (2012–2014). He served as an Associate Research Scientist (2014–2015) and Assistant Research Scientist (2015–2019) at Rockefeller University, and as an Affiliate Researcher at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (2020–2023). Since 2015, he has been a Scientist at A.C. Camargo Cancer Center, where he leads the Bioinformatics Laboratory. His research focuses on the development and application of computational methods, artificial intelligence, and data science for basic and translational cancer research.

The advancement of Digital and Computational Pathology in Brazil represents a paradigm shift in the practice of Anatomic Pathology, transforming the way pathology is performed and interpreted. However, the transition from digital pathology to computational pathology still faces important challenges related to professional training, infrastructure implementation, costs, and the demonstration of clinical effectiveness. This lecture will discuss these challenges and highlight the importance of broad dialogue on their impact on pathology practice, education, and research.

Dr. Fernando Soares is Medical Director of Anatomic Pathology at Rede D'Or, a researcher at the D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), and Professor Emeritus of General Pathology at the University of São Paulo (USP). With more than 40 years of experience in pathology education, research, and diagnostic practice, he is recognized as one of the pioneers of Digital Pathology in Brazil. He currently leads a high-volume anatomic pathology service operating in a fully digital and computational environment.

Our research group develops computational tools to analyze spatial transcriptomics data by integrating gene expression, tissue organization, and cellular interactions. We apply these approaches to the study of cancer and infectious diseases, aiming to identify cellular niches, mechanisms of disease progression, and patterns associated with host responses. This lecture will present examples of these applications and discuss how emerging computational tools can enhance the biological and pathological interpretation of spatial transcriptomics data.

Dr. Helder Nakaya is a Senior Researcher at Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, in São Paulo, Brazil, and an Associate Professor at the University of São Paulo (USP). He holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology and has extensive training in Bioinformatics. An expert in Systems Immunology, his research focuses on integrating large-scale biological data, networks, and predictive models, particularly in the fields of vaccines and infectious diseases. His laboratory develops and applies computational approaches to investigate disease mechanisms through Systems Biology. Dr. Nakaya also serves as an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Pathology at Emory University School of Medicine.