To determine whether alterations in oncogenes are associated with tumour progression and metastasis, DNAs from 32 metastatic tumour samples of different sites in 12 autopsy cases of gastric carcinomas were analysed for alterations of ERBB, ERBB2, HST1, INT2 and LMYC genes by Southern blot hybridisation. This evidence concerns the gene EGFR and gastric carcinoma.