Glossary
Cytogenetic analysis
(SY-toh-jeh-NEH-tik uh-NA-lih-sis)
The process of analyzing cells in a sample of tissue, blood, bone marrow, or amniotic fluid to look for changes in chromosomes, including broken, missing, rearranged, or extra chromosomes. Changes in certain chromosomes may be a sign of a genetic disease or condition or some types of cancer. Cytogenetic analysis may be used to help diagnose disease, plan treatment, or find out how well treatment is working.
Definition from the National Cancer Institute’s NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms.