Pitfalls in the detection of disseminated non-hematological tumor cells

There is not yet a consensus on the reliability of the methods that should be used for the detection of rare disseminated tumor cells from non-hematol ogical malignancies. In this review, we will discuss the advantage and draw backs of the classical approach of immunocytochemistry and the molecular de tection by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The in terpretation of the biological significance of circulating tumor cells and the pitfalls of the detection techniques are the main causes of discrepancy between the conclusions of different tumor-cell detection (TCD) studies.