Estrogen /Progesterone Receptor Assay

Sample type

Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tumor

One paraffin block or seven unstained, positively-charged tissue slides cut at 4 to 5 microns and dried for one hour at 60°C

Uses

Cancer prognosis: ER and PR positivity is a favorable prognostic factor in breast and endometrial carcinoma and meningioma.

Response to endocrine therapy: Combined ER and PR positivity is associated with increased response to antiestrogen therapies.

Precautions

Specimen should be fixed in 10% neutral-buffered formalin within one hour of collection. Optimum fixation time is six to 72 hours.

You won’t need any special preparations if you are getting local anesthesia (numbing of the biopsy site). If you are getting general anesthesia, you will probably need to fast (not eat or drink) for several hours before surgery. Your surgeon will give you more specific instructions. Also, if you are getting a sedative or general anesthesia, be sure to arrange for someone to drive you home. You may be groggy and confused after you wake up from the procedure.

Interfering factors

bruising or bleeding at the biopsy site.

Pre-analytical errors

If the sample was not collected with the correct instructions.

The corrective action.

The sample must be rejected and the patient taught the correct method for collecting the sample, and another sample should be requested.

Post-analytical errors

Write an other patient`s name in the report

If the patient’s gender is written wrong in the report, the reference range was written incorrectly

The corrective action

If the report is not delivered to the patient and this error is discovered, the correct name must be written, but if the report is delivered to the patient, you must communicate with him, apologise to him, and tell him that an error has occurred and replace it with the correct report

If the report is not delivered to the patient and this error is discovered, fix it, but if the report is delivered to the patient, apologise to him, tell him that an error has occurred, and replace it with the correct report. And next time, be careful when you write down the gender and reference range.

Reference range

ER-positive (ER+): Cancers that have estrogen receptors (ER)

PR-positive (PR+): Cancers that have progesterone receptors (PR)

Hormone receptor-positive (HR+): Cancers that have one or both types of these receptors.

Breast cancers without ER or PR receptors are known as HR-negative (HR-).