School of Pathology

The School of Pathology is a school in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. It comprises departments including Anatomical Pathology, Chemical Pathology, Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Human Genetics, Immunology, Medical Virology, Molecular Medicine and Haematology, and Virology.

Its research strengths lie in infectious diseases, molecular diagnostics and antimicrobial resistance, with work on tuberculosis genomics, hepatitis B therapeutics, vaccine safety surveillance and emerging pathogens. Studies of Clostridioides difficile, cholera ecology and rare parasitic infections reflect laboratory and genomic epidemiology. The school also works on cancer pathology and genetic risk assessment, particularly prostate, breast and lymphoma diagnostics.

Further themes include cost-effective diagnostic strategies and population-specific risk factors, with emphasis on resource-constrained and HIV-prevalent settings. The research is focused on South Africa and the wider African region.