Pre-Analytic Guidelines

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Pre-Analytic Guidelines

  • Cold ischemic time is defined as the time from tissue removal to initiation of fixation, which must be less than or equal to one hour.
  • Samples for HER2 testing must be fixed a MINIMUM of 6 hours, regardless of sample size.
  • The tissue handling requirements must be standardized and reported on every specimen.
  • The required fixative is 10% neutral buffered formalin (NBF).
  • Optimal fixation times are from 6 to 72 hours and should be documented in the pathology report.