Technical failure rates for reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded material from soft-tissue tumour specimens for the three time periods assessed
| Year/type of sections received | Total no. of requests | No. and % of RT-PCR technical fails | No. of fails from in-house material | No. of fails from referred material | Percentage of referral case which failed | No. of failed cases from biopsy material | No. of failed cases from excision material | No. of RT-PCR technical fails that also had FISH, and no. with successful FISH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 (5×10 µm scrolls) | 209 | 28 (13.4%) | 8 (6 excision specimens, 2 core biopsies) | 20 (9 excision specimens, 1 biopsy, 10 unknown) | 20/28=71.4% | 3 | 15 (NB in 10 cases material type was not known) | 17/17 |
| 2012 (5×5 µm slides) | 158 | 7 (4.4%) | 1 (1 core biopsy) | 6 (5 excision specimens, 1 core biopsy) | 6/7=85.7% | 2 | 5 | 7/7 |
| 2013 (1×10 µm slide) | 203 | 16 (7.9%) | 11 (11 biopsies) | 5 (3 excision specimens, 2 biopsies) | 5/16=31.3% | 13 | 3 | 14/14 |
FISH, fluorescence in situ hybridisation.