Hi Laurie,
I don't really know how it could happen that one core is fine and the other
not.  We use the histoscreen cassettes and love them.   We put all our
biopsies in them and so far have not experienced any of the problem you
describe.


Hazel Horn, HT/HTL (ASCP)
Histology Supervisor
Arkansas Children's Hospital

Phone - 501.364.4240
Fax - 501.364.3912 

-----Original Message-----
From: Laurie Colbert [mailto:laurie.colbert@huntingtonhospital.com] 
Sent: Thursday, June 26, 2003 1:56 PM
To: histonet@pathology.swmed.edu
Subject: Histoscreen cassettes


I was wondering if anyone who uses the histoscreen (mesh) cassettes is
experiencing any problems with processing of the tissue.

We routinely use histoscreen cassettes for prostate needle biopsies (and
other small biopsies).  We often get 6 specimens from the same patient, so
we will have 6 cassettes.  Lately, we've been seeing one block out of the
six that has not processed well.  Today we had a block with two cores, and
one of the cores was fine but the second core was terrible.  My theory was
that air bubbles were getting trapped in the cassettes and preventing the
solutions from getting to the tissue.  We do get air bubbles in the
cassettes and they will float, so we "swish" the blocks in formalin when we
put them in the formalin holding bucket.  But we put eosin in our 95%
alcohol and the cores are colored pink so I know that at least the alcohol
is getting in.  Also, I can't explain why one core in a block would be fine
and the second core is not.  I don't think this is a collection problem.

I would appreciate any feedback concerning this problem.

Laurie Colbert


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