[Molecular pathology: intersection of morphology, biochemistry and genetics]

Molecular analysis of samples of cells and tissues plays an important part in clinical pathology, as a supplement to classical morphological examination. This holds true without reserve for immunohistochemistry, by now indispensable for clinical pathology. It was only recently that molecular genetic analysis was introduced into the pathological laboratory and it may be expected that this technique will play an important part, especially in cancer diagnostics. Where haemato-oncological malignancies and soft tissue sarcomas are concerned, this is already the case. Molecular tumour analysis will gain momentum due to advanced automated analysis using DNA arrays. Morphological aspects will long remain the foundation of tumour classification, but in the future not without major support from molecular analysis.