Monosomy 7 is a non-random cytogenetic abnormality that is frequently associated with myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Twenty-four bone marrow samples from five pediatric patients with MDS were analysed using both traditional and interphase cytogenetic analysis. The majority of the metaphases were monosomic for chromosome 7 while interphase cytogenetic analysis consistently detected a disomic cell population in nondividing cell populations. This suggests that the monosomy 7 cells have a distinct proliferative advantage compared to the disomic cell population. The results demonstrate that interphase cytogenetic analysis provides important cytogenetic information about non-dividing cell subpopulations, enhancing our understanding of the cell dynamics of normal and monosomy 7 cells in MDS.