Pathways Consult Service & Biorepository
Overview
The Pathways program aims to discover new insights into the unifying mechanisms and underlying biology of disease through the close examination of a single, medically complex patient. This provides a unique opportunity for medical residents to explore a scientific inquiry that connects bench to bedside, and allows an in-depth exploration of rare models of disease.
Consult service
Within the consult service, a team of MGH medical residents are assigned complex medical cases where a patient’s diagnosis does not fit the normal pathophysiology of the disease in question. Working closely with core scientists and other faculty at MGH, a detailed work-up of each case is performed and residents will have the opportunity to present their findings to fellow residents and other members of the MGH medical community. Each team is then given the opportunity to publish a detailed report of their case in the MGH newsletter, Advances in Motion.
Biorepository
In addition to the consult service, the Pathways Biorepository collects and banks samples from rare cases presented at MGH, providing additional opportunities for collaborative research. In order to learn more about rare phenotypic presentations of different diseases, samples collected through the Pathways Biorepository can be analyzed via single-cell RNA sequencing, whole genome and/or exome sequencing, HLA-typing, and other complex analyses.
In an effort to increase opportunities for scientific inquiries, the Pathways program has recently expanded include patients who present with unique diagnoses in an outpatient setting. This includes existing MGH patients who may be referred by a member of their regular care team, or external patients who may be referred by a provider from another institution.