Diagnostic gold standard for soft tissue tumours: morphology or molecular genetics?

The recognition of recurrent genetic alterations inspecific tumour types ha s provided the basis for the reclassification of certain soft tissue neopla sms, and molecular analysis of patient material has the potential to provid e both diagnostic and prognostic information, In this review, we evaluate t he role of molecular genetic testing as the prospective 'gold standard' for sarcoma diagnosis. Molecular genetic testing, as with every new method, pr omises to improve accuracy and to be more sensitive and less subjective, cl aims that have been made previously by histochemistry, electron microscopy and immunohistochemistry. Technical limitations in molecular assays, as wel l as more general specificity issues, decrease the clinical usefulness of m olecular pathological testing significantly and suggest that, at present, m olecular evaluation is best, considered an ancillary technique that neither supersedes other ancillary techniques nor eclipses traditional pathologica l examination.