Cell preparations and cell supports and their use in theranosis

A method of preparing cells from a patient specimen comprising a tissue or a clump of cells, which method comprises:

• (i) soaking the patient specimen in a pre-warmed, balanced salt solution comprising a reducing agent and a chelating agent;
• (ii) transferring the patient specimen to a fresh, balanced salt solution comprising a reducing agent, a source of calcium ions, and a polar aprotic solvent and mixing;
• (iii) removing the patient specimen from the fresh, balanced salt solution and either (a) centrifuging the solution to pellet disaggregated cells or (b) straining the solution to collect disaggregated cells;
• and
• (iv) after (iii)(a), discarding the supernatant, re-suspending the pelleted cells in residual supernatant, and placing the re-suspended cells in a fixative or, after (iii)(b), placing the strained cells in a fixative;
• whereupon cells from a patient specimen comprising a tissue or a clump of cells are prepared.