[Histonet] How To Store Fresh Frozen Tissue Over a Weekend

[Bob Richmond]

>
> Christie Saunders MLS(ASCP)CMQIHC, MOHS Histotechnician in Ohio, asks:
>


> >>I may have a silly question, but I truly do not know the answer to this
> question. I work in a MOHs lab and need to know if there's a particular way
> to store unprocessed tissue in a fridge or freezer in some way (without
> using a cryo-freezer). Can saline solution or PBS work and then process
> that tissue on a Monday if they were collected on a Friday? Please help.<<
>

Hardly a silly question, but a very important one. Do NOT store tissue in
saline or what have you. Put it in saline-moistened gauze or similar
material, and put it in the refrigerator (not the freezer) until you're
ready to freeze and cut it.

Every OR nurse is taught that afloat in saline is the pathologist's friend,
but it's a disaster.

By the way, "Mohs" isn't an acronym, not MOHS. Frederic Mohns (1910-2002 -
has a Wikipedia bio) was an American surgeon who developed a surgical
technique somewhat similar to the procedure that bears his name.

Bob Richmond
Samurai Pathologist
Maryville TN