Patent ID: 8151593

Claim:
An apparatus for preparing a frozen tissue specimen from an excised tissue sample, wherein the apparatus comprises: a) a freezing box including a first base, a lid that covers the first base, and a freezing chamber defined by the first base and the lid, the freezing chamber being sized and shaped to receive freezing agent, and the freezing box being made from a thermal insulating material for maintaining a reduced temperature environment in the freezing chamber for freezing the excised tissue sample; b) a freezing platform provided in the freezing box and including a flat freezing surface and at least one hole; c) at least one sample container, the sample container sized and shaped to receive the excised tissue sample and an embedding material, the at least one sample container including a well having a flat bottom that acts as a conforming plane for flattening the excised tissue thereon, walls and flat flanges connected at the upper portion of the walls to define a flat surface, the flat bottom made of a material that is at least semi-transparent to permit visual inspection of the excised tissue sample through the at least semi-transparent bottom of the sample container to confirm the tissue sample is sufficiently flattened before the embedding material is added and the tissue sample is frozen; and d) at least one chuck, the at least one chuck having a generally planar surface for placement on the flat flanges of the sample container and a post opposite the planar surface, the flat flanges and the chuck cooperating to ensure that the conforming plane of the sample container and the planar surface of the chuck remain parallel when the chuck is at or near room temperature and is placed on the sample container, and the embedding material is then frozen.