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BACKGROUND The 2013 testing guidelines for determining the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status include new cutoff points for the HER2/chromosome enumeration probe 17 (CEP17) ratio and the average HER2 copy number per cell, and they recommend using a reflex test with alternative chromosome 17 probes (Ch17Ps) to resolve equivocal HER2 results. This study sought to determine the clinical utility of alternative Ch17Ps in equivocal cases and the effects of equivocal results and/or a change in the HER2 status on patients' outcomes. METHODS The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center database of HER2 dual-probe fluorescence in situ hybridization results from 2000 to 2010 was searched for cases of invasive breast cancer with HER2/CEP17 ratios

thymic nude mice and rats provide an excellent opportunity tostudy the in vivo biology of human cancer cells. It is now acommon practice to implant human cancer cells (fresh as well as longterm established) into athymic nude mice for studying experimentalmetastasis, selecting clones with different tumorigenic and metastaticproperties, monitoring growth in therapeutic trials, investigating cell-to-cell interactions between tumor and stromal cells, and, finally,studying in vivo carcinogenesis.