Patients with the EML4-ALK fusion gene were significantly younger (P< 0.001).    ///    The optimal time lag from the obtainment of the pathological tissue to the time of EML4-ALK fusion gene detection is ?48 months..    ///    The detection rate of the EML4-ALK fusion gene in patients who received primary tumor or metastatic lymph node resection was significantly higher than in patients who received fine-needle biopsy (P= 0.003).     ///     The echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like-4-anaplastic lymphoma kinase (EML4-ALK) fusion gene defines a novel molecular subset of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).     ///    "However, the clinicopathological features of patients with the EML4-ALK fusion gene have not been defined completely. "    ///    "The EML4-ALK fusion gene was detected in 56 (28.0%) of the 200 NSCLC patients, and undetected in 22 (11.0%) patients because of an insufficient amount of pathological tissue. "    ///    Younger age and wild-type EGFR were identified as clinicopathological characteristics of patients with advanced NSCLC who harbored the EML4-ALK fusion gene.     ///    The occurrence of the EML4-ALK fusion gene in patients with wild-type epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) was significantly higher than in patients with mutant-type EGFR (42.5% [37/87] vs.     ///    The detection rate of the EML4-ALK fusion gene in patients with a time lag from obtainment of the pathological tissue to EML4-ALK fusion gene detection ?48 months was significantly higher than in patients >48 months (P= 0.020).     ///    Clinicopathological data of 200 Chinese patients with advanced NSCLC were analyzed retrospectively to explore their possible correlations with EML4-ALK fusions.    ///    "The median age of the patients with positive and negative EML4-ALK was 48 and 55 years, respectively. "