Abstract: In a method for the production of a material block containing a number of test samples, particularly tissue samples, a material blank, preferably made of paraffin and containing a number of openings to accommodate the corresponding tissue samples, is first produced, whereby a material blank is formed with a regular arrangement of openings by means of a suitably shaped casting mold, with said openings extending from the first main surface of the material blank in the direction of a second main surface of the material blank up to a specific depth, preferably penetrating completely through the block. These openings are then filled with tissue samples in the form of cylindrical tissue cores, and these cores are closely bonded with the surrounding material of the material blank, preferably by means of a double-melt procedure.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for diagnosis, monitoring and prognosticating the disease course of gas-trointestinal tumors, comprising determining the level of a cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor (CK1) in a sample and diagnosing the disease and/or recurrence of the disease or prognosticating the disease course from the level of said CK1 in the examined tumor cells. Furthermore the present invention provides a method for tailoring a suitable therapy for gastrointestinal tumors. Another aspect of the present invention are test kits for research and diagnostic purposes.