Molecular Diagnostics of Cancer

Present and potential future applications of new diagnosticstrategies basedon the direct or indirect detection ofcancer genes are delineated in this volume. Among themethodological aspects covered are enzymatic targetamplification by the polymerase chain reaction and relatedtechniques, DNA fingerprinting, transfer of putative cancergenes in appropriate receipient cells, and recentdevelopments inthe application of monoclonal antibodies inimmunohistochemistry and immunoscintigraphy. The diagnosticand functional implications of mutations in cancer genessuch as ras and p53 are described. The characterization ofcancer genes and their products is correlated with growthcontrol anddissemination of tumour cells by in vitro orclinical evidence. The contributions in the present volumeuptdate the information available on established or newlydescribed cancer genes, and may help manage the transitionfrom basic research to clinical practice.