Specimen Preparation Instructions
Collect Sufficient Specimen
- All samples should be formalin-fixed
- Sufficient tissue must be available to complete all analysis
- Total surface area needed >50mm2, 4μm thick
- Tissue from the most recent tumour biopsy or recurrence is recommended (6-12 months old)
Fixed Specimen
Paraffin Block (Preferred) |
Specimen Options:
|
Unstained Slides |
Specimen Requirements:
|
Verify Tumour Content
Cancer Cell Density needed for NGS
- Minimum 50ng DNA ( ≥ 20% tumour origin)
Tissue Inspection and Cell Enrichment
When possible, Caris Life Sciences® will microdissect specimen with < 50% cancer cells to increase the Cancer Cell Density for higher quality testing. If the tissue on the slide has a large percent of tumour, the DNA can be obtained from a fewer number of slides.
Formalin Fixed Paraffin Embedded (FFPE) Samples
SPECIMEN TYPE | SPECIMEN REQUIREMENTS |
Fixed Tissue | One (1) tumour-containing formalin fixed paraffin embedded block (FFPE) from most recent surgery or biopsy. Successive four (4) micron sections will be created from the block until sufficient material for the testing orders is obtained. For the molecular analysis, tumour cells will be excised by microdissection until a total area of at least 50mm2 is obtained. |
Unstained Slides | Unstained, positively charged, unbaked slides from one single, tumour-containing formalin fixed paraffin embedded block; 4 micron sections
Note: At least a 5mm x 5mm section of tissue per slide is required. For small biopsies (tissue area < 5 mm x 5 mm) please cut two sections per slide for at least one half of the slides to ensure sufficient material for molecular assays. |
Core Needle Biopsy | Four to six (4-6) biopsies formalin fixed paraffin embedded
|
Fine Needle Aspirate (FNA) | One (1) formalin fixed paraffin embedded block containing sufficient tumour |
Download this information in pdf format “Specimen Preparation Instructions”
Created: February 28, 2017 - Modified: June 28, 2019