Professional/Short course Studies in the Biology of Disease

Structure

Content

You will carry out case studies selected to illustrate the multifactorial and integrated nature of disease and its laboratory investigation. The module syllabus typically includes:

Homeostasis and malignant disease

• Central importance of homeostasis, mechanisms of control and the consequences of failure.
• Concepts of disease and normality, reference ranges.
• Mechanisms of cancer development at a cellular level, haematological disorders and diagnosis and treatment.

Cellular pathology

• Microscopic analysis of cells and tissues.
• Preparative processes for microscopical analysis of tissues and cells.
• Cell and tissue stabilisation.
• Histological and cytological features of the disease state.
• Clinical laboratory applications of cellular pathology; its role in diagnosis, prognosis and prediction.

Clinical biochemistry

• Diagnosis, screening and monitoring of disease through qualitative and quantitative evaluation.
• Diagnosis of liver, cardiac diseases and endocrine disorders.
• Drug toxicity and drug monitoring.

Haematology and transfusion science

• Haematology of normal and disease states, haemoglobinopathies and thalassaemias, anaemias, leukaemias and thrombosis.
• Laboratory investigation of disease states
• The role of the laboratory in monitoring of therapy.

Immunohaematology

• Identification of blood group antigens, methods for antibody detection and compatibility testing and safety aspects of blood transfusion.

Medical microbiology

• Relationship between host and microorganisms, mechanisms of pathogenicity, transmission and response to infection, factors influencing susceptibility, epidemiology, laboratory investigation of infectious diseases and vaccination.

Immunology

• Structure and function of the immune system, innate and acquired immunity, inflammation, tolerance.

Professional/generic aspects

• Requirements for registration, the HCPC and IBMS.
• Standards that govern pathology laboratory practice, health and safety, ethics.
• Quality assurance and quality control, sources of error.

Study time

The contact hours (72) are distributed as follows:

• 18 lectures (3 hours per lecture) = 54 hours
• 6 laboratory sessions (3 hours per practical) = 18 hours.

Assessment

Assessment for this module comprises:

• A written assignment (2x500 words), which is a series of continuous professional development (CPD) submissions. Students will complete a paper-based study that contains true/false questions that assesses their understanding of a paper followed by two short answer questions that link their reading of the paper to their understanding of biomedical science as a profession.
• An examination (3 hours): an in-person closed-book exam. The exam will contain questions relating to the specific QAA benchmarks covered in the module, providing students with an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge on a broad range of topics, and more in-depth knowledge of the biomedical specialisms. Questions will be written that specifically assess elements of the QAA benchmark statements.

Students are provided with formative feed-forward for their exam through a revision and exam preparation session prior to the exam. Feedback from the written assignment is specifically designed to help with the completion of the exam. Questions similar in style to the exam will be provided on the blackboard site and will be available at the beginning of the academic year.