Comparative genomic hybridization analysis of hepatoblastomas: additional evidence for a genetic link with Wilms tumor and rhabdomyosarcoma

We applied the technique of comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) to a series of 16 hepatoblastomas. Our goals were (1) to identify all quantitative chromosome abnormalities that appear in this type of tumor and (2) to compare the results with data from similar studies on other tumors associated with the Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome (BWS). We found that the most commonly detected (> 30%) chromosome abnormalities were gains of chromosomes 1, 2, 7, 8, and 17. Losses of chromosomes were found in only a few cases. On comparing our results with those from studies on the BWS-associated tumors, Wilms tumor and rhabdomyosarcoma, it became clear that three chromosome regions, namely, 7q, 8q, and 17q, were the ones most commonly involved in all three types of tumors. These regions, therefore, may harbor genes that play a role in the etiology of BWS-associated tumors in general.