p53 mutations appear an acquired rather than an inherited event in sporadic ovarian cancer: a study of DNA from tumor specimens and blood leukocytes

The p53 gene is located on the small arm of chromosome 17 and mutations or hyperexpression are found in a high percentage of ovarian cancer cases (44–92%). We studied DNA extracted from blood leukocytes of 38 ovarian cancer patients; tumor tissues were also available for analysis in 20 of these cases. Specimens were examined using Single Strand Conformation Polymorphism (SSCP) analysis and direct genomic sequencing of the p53 gene. Exons from 2...