The main objective of the Pathology Core is to provide access to optimally preserved tumors and normal tissues collected from excess surgical material to City of Hope Cancer Center researchers.  These tissues have been collected for over fourteen years, and several thousand samples of diverse neoplasms are currently available in the frozen tumor bank.  Additionally, samples of normal tissue are filed whenever possible along with tumor samples.  Periodic inventories and sample testing for quality of morphologic preservation and DNA/RNA integrity are conducted.  All entries are available in a computerized database and complete follow-up information is available for most samples in the tumor bank.

Optimally fixed samples of each tumor, often in more than one type of fixative, are also available.  In addition, multi-tissue blocks, containing many types of tumor and normal tissue, are available to facilitate retrospective screenings of new antibodies by immunohistochemistry and new molecular probes by in situ hybridization methods.

Additional assistance and training in the performance of immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization procedures are provided to researchers for a nominal fee.  Consultations with the users of this core facility by a qualified pathologist and/or molecular biologist are required.