How do I collect an FNA sample?

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ImpriMed steps for FNA collection

  1. Disinfect the skin with alcohol (70%) at the planned needle puncture site.
  2. Insert a 20-gauge needle (without syringe) into an enlarged lymph node and perform 15 - 20 aspirations using an aggressive “woodpecker style” technique.  Stop aspirating when the aspirate appears in the hub of the needle.
  3. Attach the needle to a 5 - 10 mL syringe (with at least 1 ml of air). Tilt the collection tube upside down and inject the aspirated material directly into the medium.
  4. Allow a small amount of fluid (~1/4 mL) to flush back into the needle, then gently reinject into a fluid medium to flush out the needle.
  5. Repeat the procedure multiple times to ensure all the aspirate is transferred into the media tube.  

We need at least 10 million cells to conduct the drug response predictions, so if you need to aspirate from other affected nodes please do so. There are no additional costs for additional nodes or tubes. Typically, 2 FNA tubes of adequate cellularity are required to reach 10 million cells.  

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Important Note:

If a blood vessel was lacerated during the procedure and the collection tube becomes significantly bloody, please select a different biopsy site and repeat the procedure.  Store any FNA tubes in the fridge immediately after the biopsy. DO NOT freeze samples or the transport media.We also accept fresh lymph node tissue and spleen samples (within 24 hours of collection).

Other Questions

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Can the test be used on cats and other animals?

At this time, we only offer commercial services to canine lymphoma patients. However, we are conducting research into feline lymphoma so if you would like to submit a sample please sign up here if you are interested in feline services.

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Can the testing be performed on dogs that are currently on therapy?

Current therapy will not affect our AI predictions or immunoprofile results. However, reduction of tumor size caused by therapy may increase the likelihood of service failure due to insufficient cells. In the event of service failure, you will not be billed.

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Do you test "rescue" drugs as well?

Yes, many of the 13 anticancer drugs we provide predictions for are used for rescue therapy. The drugs we test against are: L-Asparaginase, Mitoxantrone, Vincristine, Vinblastine, Doxorubicin, Tanovea, Chlorambucil, Mechlorethamine, Lomustine, Prednisone, Cyclophosphamide, Melphalan, and Dexamethasone.

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How long until I get my ImpriMed report?

Our flow cytometry, PARR, and Immunoprofile reports are emailed to you 3-4 days after receipt of your patient’s sample(s) at our lab. The Personalized Prediction Profile reports are emailed to you 6-7 days after receipt of your patient’s sample(s) at our lab.

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What does PARR tell me about my patient’s specimen?

PARR, which stands for PCR for Antigen Receptor Rearrangements, is used to discriminate between lymphoma/leukemia and reactive/inflammatory conditions when cytology is equivocal. Our canine PARR assay detects the expansion of B-cell cancer clones by amplifying the VJ region of the immunoglobulin heavy chain gene (IgH) and detects the expansion of T-cell cancer clones by amplifying a region in the T-cell receptor gamma chain gene.

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