[Comparison of chromosomal defects in primary tumor and metastases by comparative genomic hybridization (CGH)]

Molecular methods can complement the classical methods in pathology like macroscopic, histological and immunohistochemical examinations.Comparative genomic hybridization is a cytogenetic method to screen for gains and losses of chromosomal material in tumor cells. This method allows defect studies of archival paraffin-embedded and formalin-fixed tumor material. CGH can detect gains and losses of chromosomal material that are at least 10 to 20 megabases in size. This genome-wide screening method allows to study the cytogenetic relationship between differently located tumors of a patient. To answer the question if these different tumors are metastases of the primary lung tumor or independent primary tumors CGH analysis is a supplementary method that introduces new prospectives.