Molecular Diagnosis of Cancer

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xi

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2. Prognostic and Predictive Factors

   • Michael Scott, Peter A. Hall

   Pages 1-11

3. Assessment of Predictive Values of Tumor Markers

   • Joseph E. Roulston

   Pages 13-27

4. Quality Assurance of Predictive Markers in Breast Cancer

   • Anthony Rhodes, Diana M. Barnes

   Pages 29-57

5. Extraction of Nucleic Acid Templates

   • John M. S. Bartlett, Helen Speirs

   Pages 59-70

6. Microdissection and Extraction of DNA From Archival Tissue

   • Joanne Edwards, James J. Going, John M. S. Bartlett

   Pages 71-75

7. Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization

   • John M. S. Bartlett

   Pages 77-87

8. HER2 FISH in Breast Cancer

   • John M. S. Bartlett, Amanda Forsyth

   Pages 89-101

9. Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization for BCR-ABL

   • Mark W. Drummond, Elaine K. Allan, Andrew Pearce, Tessa L. Holyoake

   Pages 103-116

10. UroVysion™ Multiprobe FISH in Urinary Cytology

    • Lukas Bubendorf, Bruno Grilli

    Pages 117-128

11. Chromogenic In Situ Hybridization in Tumor Pathology

    • Jorma Isola, Minna Tanner

    Pages 133-144

12. Comparative Genomic Hybridization and Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

    • Marie Jarosova

    Pages 145-157

13. Molecular Characterization of Human Papillomaviruses by PCR and In Situ Hybridization

    • Suzanne D. Vernon, Elizabeth R. Unger

    Pages 159-180

14. A Nested RT-PCR Assay to Detect BCR/abl

    • Linda M. Wasserman

    Pages 181-189

15. TP53 Mutation Detection by SSCP and Sequencing

    • Jenni Hakkarainen, Judith A. Welsh, Kirsi H. Vähäkangas

    Pages 191-208

16. PCR Diagnosis of T-Cell Lymphoma in Paraffin-Embedded Bone Marrow Biopsies

    • Jean Benhattar, Sandra Gebhard

    Pages 209-216

17. Circulating DNA Analysis

    • Kwan-Chee Allen Chan, Yuk-Ming Dennis Lo

    Pages 217-236

18. Microsatellite Instability

    • Gillian Gifford, Robert Brown

    Pages 237-250

19. Diagnostic and Prognostic Significance of the Methylation Status of Myf-3 in Lymphoproliferative Disorders

    • Jeremy M. E. Taylor, Peter H. Kay, Dominic V. Spagnolo

    Pages 251-265

20. Quantitative Analysis of PRAME for Detection of Minimal Residual Disease in Leukemia

    • Maiko Matsushita, Rie Yamazaki, Yutaka Kawakami

    Pages 267-275

We are currently experiencing a fundamental shift in the way in which we approach the characterization of cancer. Never before has the make up of cancer tissues and individual cells been so exhaustively researched and char- terized. We are now capable of producing molecular “fingerprints” that ch- acterize the expression of all known and unknown genes within tumors and their surrounding tissues. More than 30,000 different genes may be measured in each patient’s tumor in a single experiment. Simultaneously, novel therapies that exploit the molecular roadmap have been developed and are now being offered to patients. These novel agents, such as Glivec, Herceptin, Iressa, and others, specifically target individual genes within tumors and can produce d- matic responses in some patients. These drugs are only the forerunners of a coming tidal wave of novel therapeutics that individually target specific m- ecules within cancer cells—more than 300 such agents are currently in phase I or II clinical trials. This is an exciting time for cancer specialists and patients alike. However, if we have learned anything from the past 50 or more years of research into cancer, it is that Lord Beaverbrook, in founding the British national health service in the 1950s, was frighteningly prescient when he defined the primary goal of health care to be “Diagnosis, Diagnosis, Diag- sis. ” Now, more than ever, it is essential that appropriate diagnostic methods and approaches are applied to the selection of patients for treatment.

"...concise and uniformly well written...contains a large compilation of applications of nucleic acid technologies that are in use or may be in use in the near future to diagnose and aid in the management of malignant diseases." - Doody's Health Sciences Book Review Journal

Review of the First Edition
The techniques described here are standard laboratory lore;the added value are the notes and tips on tricky details andoften overlooked precautions....Laboratory scientists...will get their money's worth. -Modern Pathology

"....a diverse collection of readily reproducible methods...the protocols presented follow step-by-step laboratory instructions, an introduction outlining the principle behind the technique, lists of equipment and reagents, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls." - Tumori

From the reviews of the second edition:

"Dramatic advances in molecular biology over the past decades have led to an unprecedented understanding of cancer at a very detailed molecular level. … tips on troubleshooting are presented in each chapter, written by experts in the field. Given the amount of detail incorporated in each protocol, these should be readily reproducible and enable laboratories with no prior experience in a specific technique to master it and be able to use todays most powerful techniques in the molecular diagnosis of cancer." (Janis Racevskis, Medical Oncology, Vol. 22 (3), 2004)

• Division of Reproductive and Developmental Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, The Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

  Joseph E. Roulston

• Division of Cancer and Molecular Pathology, University Department of Surgery, Glasgow Royal Infirmary, Glasgow, Scotland, UK

  John M. S. Bartlett

Policies and ethics