Klinisk Biokemi i Norden · 1 2018
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NFKK2018: Information beyond numbers, part II
Outi Itkonen
HUSLAB, Helsinki University Central Hospital
The Finnish Society of Clini-
cal Chemistry (FSCC) is proud
to organise the XXXVI Nordic
Congress in Clinical Chemistry,
NFKK2018, subtitled “Information
beyond numbers” on 12-15 June
2018 in Helsinki, Finland (www.
nfkk2018.fi). We are expecting 400-
600 participants mostly from Europe, but also from
other countries. The scientific program will cover
a wide spectrum of laboratory medicine. The social
program will enable a pleasant opportunity to meet
old colleagues and to establish new connections. Short
presentations of the coming sessions were published in
the previous issue of KBN. Now it’s time for the next
glance at the program, enjoy it! Also, please note, that
registration is already open!
The future of molecular biology in the diagnostic
laboratories
: We are proud to have IFCC President
Maurizio Ferrari open the congress with a plenary
presentation looking into the future of diagnostic labo-
ratories. Recent advanced in the genomic field and the
development of new technologies for DNA testing star-
ted the revolution of the diagnostic laboratory enabling
mutation detection as an alternative to protein-based
diagnostics. Mutation detection can be used to detect
known mutations or scan for unknown mutations. By
now, hundreds of genes have been identified to con-
tribute to human illness and to a patient’s response to
treatments. Future aspects of genetic testing include
miniaturization and high-throughput technologies
(next generation sequencing), increased speed and
reduced cost. In his plenary talk Dr. Ferrari will give
us a view to the fast changing landscape of genetics
with technological advances enabling data production
with unimaginable speed.
The Astrup Prize Competition:
As always, the tradi-
tional Astrup Prize Competition is organized in con-
nection with the Nordic congress. Young scientist are
encouraged to submit abstracts by the 22
nd
January
for the competition. For the audience, it is possible in
this session to learn about the very recent advances in
various fields of clinical chemistry innovated in the
Nordic countries!
Bioinformatics in the laboratory:
Novel, large-scale
measurement techniques are used routinely in bio- and
medical sciences. To fully harness the power of these
techniques, and translate the large data sets generated
by these methods to biological information, the data
need to be collected, managed, and analyzed. In this
session, an introduction to clinical bioinformatics is
given by prof. Jussi Paananen from the University of
Eastern Finland. One example of handling large data
sets is presented by Dr. Valtteri Wirta fromKarolinska
Institutet, Sweden, who will tell us about rare variant
diagnostics using whole-genome sequencing.
Update on coagulation laboratory:
Thromboem-
bolic disease is a major leading cause of mortality
and morbidity in industrialized countries. New oral
anticoagulants are replacing oral vitamin K antago-
nists for some practical advantages, like unnecessary
monitoring and a better pharmacokinetic profile.
Nevertheless, in some circumstances, their anticoa-
gulant activity must be monitored in order to prevent
adverse outcomes. Despite recent advances in diag-
nostic approaches, there are opportunities to further
improve and streamline the diagnostic assessment of
coagulation disorders. We expect inspiring talks entit-
led “Clinical and laboratory aspects of ACmonitoring’
by Prof. Riitta Lassila, Coagulation Disorders Unit,
Helsinki, Finland and “APTT: Sixty-five years of age
but far from retired” by Assoc. Prof. Andreas Hillarp,
Lund University, Sweden. There are some gaps in the
strategies used by Nordic laboratories to diagnose blee-
ding disorders, especially platelet function disorders.
The role of platelet function testing and proper use of
coagulation laboratory tests will be also discussed by
Anne-Mette Hvas and Timea Szanto.
