. 2014 Jan 12;17(4):638–647. doi: 10.1007/s10120-013-0329-8

Table 6.

Effect of fixative type on HER2 IHC staining and histological assessment in NCI-N87 xenografted tumors

Fixation time	Evaluation	Fixatives
Fixation time	Evaluation	10 % NBF	10 % nonbuffered formalin	20 % NBF	20 % nonbuffered formalin
24 h	HER2 IHC score^a	3+	3+	3+	3+
24 h	Histological assessment/decrease in staining^b	–	–	–	–
10 days	HER2 IHC score^a	3+	3+	3+	3+
10 days	Histological assessment/decrease in staining^b	–	–	–	–

Tests and assessments were performed in duplicate

^aHER2 IHC was performed by HercepTest

^bHistological assessment on the decrease in staining was performed in terms of the following criteria and judged in a comprehensive manner: (a) autolysis, (b) decrease in positive cells, (c) decrease of total staining intensity, (d) decrease of total staining area

−, no change, ±, very slightly decreased; +, slightly decreased, ++, moderately decreased; +++, markedly decreased