1. Follow instructions for blood specimen collection as outlined above (#1 a through c).
2. Blood must be processed within 2 hours after venipuncture. Note on the specimen shipping form if the blood was not processed within 2 hours post venipuncture.
3. Use aseptic techniques to process whole blood.
4. Follow the instructions below for buffy coat collection;
   1. Centrifuge vacutainer tube(s) at 400 x g for 10 minutes at room temperature.
   2. Pre-label cryovials according to specimen labeling requirements indicated in the General Specimen Submission Instructions.
   3. Using a sterile pipette, slowly remove the buffy coat (the thin gray- white layer located in between the red blood cells and the plasma). Avoid aspirating excessive amounts of the red blood cells while collecting the buffy coat.
   4. Aliquot the buffy coat equally into two 2mL cryovials
   5. Immediately freeze vials in a freezing apparatus (ex. Mr. Frosty). If not available, slow freeze vials on dry ice or in a -70°C to -80°C freezer. Store frozen buffy coat vials in a -70°C to -80°C freezer until ready to ship.
5. Follow the instructions below for plasma collection:
   1. Centrifuge the vacutainer tube(s) with the remaining plasma and red blood cells at 900 x g for 10 minutes at room temperature.
   2. Pre-label cryovials according to specimen labeling requirements indicated in the General Specimen Submission Instructions
   3. Using a sterile pipette, remove the plasma (yellow -clear liquid above the red blood cells). No cells or debris should be present.
   4. Aliquot the plasma into 2mL cryovials at 1mL each.
   5. Immediately freeze vials in a freezing apparatus (ex. Mr. Frosty). If not available, slow freeze vials on dry ice or in a -70°C freezer. Store frozen plasma vials in a -70°C to -80°C freezer until ready to ship.
6. Batch ship frozen plasma and buffy coat specimens on dry ice preferably using Federal Express, Priority Overnight service. Use of other courier services may delay package receipt.
   1. Frozen specimens may only be shipped Monday through Thursday using overnight delivery to arrive Monday through Friday. Do NOT ship frozen specimens on Friday for Saturday delivery.
   2. For packaging instructions, refer to shipping guidelines for frozen specimens in the General Specimen Submission Instructions outlined above.

Note: Specimen submissions vary per protocol. Please follow instructions accordingly.

1. Standard Instructions for Collecting Tissue Specimens
   1. If the patient has consented, a portion of snap-frozen tissue (approximately > 5mm³, "pea to almond size") from the pre-treatment diagnostic biopsy or re-biopsy may be submitted for banking purposes.
   2. The decision to re-biopsy is based on clinical reasons, not solely on the need for immunologic or molecular study.
   3. These samples will be snap-frozen at the donor institution.
   4. See Standard instructions for snap freezing tissue below (#3).
2. Standard Instructions for Processing Tissue
   1. Immediately after removing tissue from the patient, place the tissue on 0.9% sodium chloride (saline) saturated gauze and place in a sterile container.
   2. Tissue to be frozen should be free of tissue capsules (ex. kidney capsule or membrane) and/or hair (ex. scalp or skin lesions).
3. Standard Instructions for Snap Freezing Tissue
   1. Snap freeze tissue within 15 minutes after the biopsy for optimal antigen preservation. If tissue cannot be frozen within 15 minutes, store at 4°C for a period of time no longer than 2 hours.
   2. Place pre-sectioned tissue (See step 2.c. above) on a piece of foil and snap freeze tissue on dry ice or in the vapor phase liquid nitrogen (do not submerge the tissue in liquid nitrogen). If not available, slow freeze tissue in a -70°C to -80°C freezer.
   3. Pre-label an airtight zip lock plastic bag according to specimen labeling requirements indicated in the General Specimen Submission Instructions. If an adhesive label is used, place the label on the inside of the bag.
   4. Place tissue wrapped in foil in the airtight zip lock plastic bag.
   5. Store snap frozen tissue in a liquid nitrogen freezer (at vapor phase) or a -70°C to -80°C freezer until ready to ship.
4. Standard Instructions for Shipping Snap Frozen Tissue:
   1. Ship frozen tissue on dry ice preferably using Federal Express, Priority Overnight service. Use of other courier services may delay package receipt.
      1. Frozen specimens may only be shipped Monday through Thursday using overnight delivery to arrive Monday through Friday. Do NOT ship frozen specimens on Friday for Saturday delivery.
      2. For packaging instructions, refer to shipping guidelines for frozen specimens in the General Specimen Submission Instructions outlined above.
5. Standard Instructions for Shipping Paraffin Embedded Tissue and Slides:
   1. Include in shipment:
      1. One standard H&E (Hematoxylin and Eosin) stained slide from a representative paraffin embedded block.
      2. One representative paraffin embedded block
      3. A pathology report (indicating the morphological diagnosis)
      4. Lymphoma prestudy and eligibility checklists for treatment protocol
      5. A copy of the shipment packing list produced by the SWOG Online Specimen Tracking System
   2. Ship paraffin embedded tissue according to the shipping guidelines for ambient specimens in the General Specimen Submission Instructions above.

Note: Specimen submissions vary per protocol. Please follow instructions accordingly.

1. Standard Instructions for Collecting and Processing Serum Specimens
   1. Use 10mL red top vacutainer tubes with no anticoagulant to collect whole blood for serum processing.
      1. If your site does not have the size vacutainer tubes required by the treatment protocol, other sized tubes may be used to collect the required/requested amount of blood.
      2. Avoid using < 3mL collection tubes.
   2. Use aseptic techniques and draw blood from the patient.
   3. Follow the instructions below for serum collection:
      1. Allow blood to clot for 30-60 minutes at room temperature.
      2. Centrifuge vacutainer tube (s) at 900 x g for 10-15 minutes at room temperature.
      3. Pre-label cryovials according to specimen labeling requirements indicated in the General Specimen Submission Instructions
      4. Using a sterile pipette, remove serum (yellow-clear liquid above clot).
      5. Aliquot the serum into 2mL cryovials at 1mL each.
      6. Immediately freeze vials in a freezing apparatus (ex. Mr. Frosty). If not available, slow freeze vials on dry ice or in a -70°C to -80°C freezer. Store frozen serum vials in a -70°C to -80°C freezer until ready to ship.
   4. Ship frozen serum specimens on dry ice preferably using Federal Express, Priority Overnight service. Use of other courier services may delay package receipt.
      1. Frozen specimens may only be shipped Monday through Thursday using only overnight delivery to arrive Monday through Friday. Do NOT ship frozen specimens on Friday for Saturday delivery.
      2. For packaging instructions, refer to shipping guidelines for frozen specimens in the General Specimen Submission Instructions outlined above.