Patent ID: 7662561

Claim:
A method of identifying expression of markers indicative of the presence of displaced cells of a squamous cell carcinoma of the head & neck in a lymph node of a human patient suspected of having a squamous cell carcinoma of the head & neck, comprising detecting a quantity of pemphigus vulgaris antigen mRNA in an RNA sample prepared from the lymph node of the patient and determining if pemphigus vulgaris antigen mRNA is overabundant in the RNA sample as compared to a level of pemphigus vulgaris antigen mRNA in benign lymph nodes, wherein the overabundance pemphigus vulgaris antigen mRNA is statistically significant and indicates the presence of displaced cells of squamous cell carcinoma of the head & neck in the lymph node, and wherein the overabundance of the pemphigus vulgaris mRNA identifies the expression of RNA indicative of the presence of displaced cells of a squamous cell carcinoma of the head & neck in the lymph node of the patient.