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Pathologist vs histologist

The differences between pathologists and histologists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a pathologist, becoming a histologist takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a pathologist has an average salary of $61,808, which is higher than the $59,183 average annual salary of a histologist.

The top three skills for a pathologist include patients, patient care and diagnosis. The most important skills for a histologist are ASCP, patient care, and immunohistochemistry.

Pathologist vs histologist overview

PathologistHistologist
Yearly salary$61,808$59,183
Hourly rate$29.72$28.45
Growth rate7%17%
Number of jobs20,3401,463
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 40%Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Average age4841
Years of experience64

What does a pathologist do?

Pathologists are medical healthcare professionals who are responsible for conducting examinations of bodies and body tissues. These pathologists must perform laboratory tests of body fluids and tissues to help primary care doctors make a diagnosis about the health of patients who are with chronic conditions. They specialize in genetic testing that will examine a tissue biopsy to determine whether a tumor is benign or cancerous. Pathologists must also perform autopsies to inform family members of the deceased about the cause of death and help them take preventive action for their own health.

What does a histologist do?

Another name for a his/her tologist is his/her tology technician, or his/her totechnician. They are health care workers who work in a medical laboratory. They are trained specifically to prepare tissue samples for a pathologist to analyze. Their duties include cutting tissue samples from organs and other tissues and staining them with specific dyes to help with microscopic analysis of the sample tissues. They may either work with humans, animals, or plant specimens. Their analysis helps with the diagnosis of disease abnormalities.

Pathologist vs histologist salary

Pathologists and histologists have different pay scales, as shown below.

PathologistHistologist
Average salary$61,808$59,183
Salary rangeBetween $25,000 And $148,000Between $34,000 And $101,000
Highest paying CityAnchorage, AK-
Highest paying stateAlaska-
Best paying companyUT Medical Group, Inc.-
Best paying industry--

Differences between pathologist and histologist education

There are a few differences between a pathologist and a histologist in terms of educational background:

PathologistHistologist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 40%Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Most common majorPhysiology And AnatomyBiology
Most common collegeStanford UniversityUniversity of Southern California

Pathologist vs histologist demographics

Here are the differences between pathologists' and histologists' demographics:

PathologistHistologist
Average age4841
Gender ratioMale, 40.7% Female, 59.3%Male, 29.0% Female, 71.0%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 20.4% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 6.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 22.2% White, 57.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage13%8%

Differences between pathologist and histologist duties and responsibilities

Pathologist example responsibilities.

  • Supervise and manage pathology, microbiology and biochemistry laboratory.
  • Provide consultations to care providers and interpret laboratory findings and diagnosis to patients.
  • Screen by ELISA & immunoblots.
  • Result in answering an FDA concern regarding device.
  • Participate in FDA submissions, plan 510k and PMA submissions.
  • Perform oncology markers and hormonal assays by Elisa and Delfia system.
  • Show more

Histologist example responsibilities.

  • Manage a group of three laboratory technicians performing ELISA assays and protein purification.
  • Perform routine histology functions, special stains, frozen sectioning and Immunohistochemistry.
  • Perform routine histology tasks including embedding, sectioning, and routine staining.
  • Provide routine histology embedding, microtome processing and staining.
  • Place on slides using a Microtome.
  • Order all supplies for IHC department.
  • Show more

Pathologist vs histologist skills

Common pathologist skills
  • Patients, 31%
  • Patient Care, 11%
  • Diagnosis, 8%
  • GI, 4%
  • GYN, 4%
  • Frozen Sections, 3%
Common histologist skills
  • ASCP, 15%
  • Patient Care, 9%
  • Immunohistochemistry, 6%
  • Tissue Samples, 5%
  • Lab Equipment, 5%
  • Frozen Sections, 4%

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