The availability of non-invasive, fast and sensitive technologies for detection of circulating cancer cells is still a critical need of clinical oncology, particularly for diagnosis of aggressive and highly metastatic tumors, like malignant melanoma. Here we present the first nested polymerase chain reaction process carried out by a microfabricated, hybrid plastic–glass microfluidic chip on the tyrosinase gene, a predictive marker for melanoma diagnosis. The device is a hybrid system consisting of a glass microchannel embedded in an elastomeric …