One of the epithelial cell adhesion molecules, E Cadherin, plays an important role in the formation of cell-cell contacts in epithelia irrespective their origin form ecto-, meso- or endodermal tissue. This early adhesion event between epithelial cells is a prerequisite for the assembly of all elements of the junctional complex. Furthermore, E Cadherin plays a crucial role in the maintenance of the epithelial junctional complex and is as such an important molecule in maintaining epithelial integrity. Over 90% of the malignant tumors are carcimomas. One of the prerequisites for the release of carcinoma cells from the primary site might be a defect in intercellular adhesion mediated by the absence of E Cadherin expression. Therefore, the expression of E Cadherin might be an important parameter for the determination of the invasive potential of epithelial neoplasms, and for the transition of a benign to a malignant neoplasm.