DNA ploidy in soft tissue sarcoma: Comparison of flow and image cytometry with clinical follow-up in 93 patients : comparison of flow and image cytometry with clinical follow-up in 93 patients

• In soft tissue sarcoma, the prognostic importance of DNA ploidy status is limited. One possible explanation may be technical; small nondiploid stemlines will he diluted in relation to the presence of normal diploid cells and may not be detected by flow cytometry (FCM). We assessed DNA ploidy status in 93 tumors with both FCM and image cytometry (ICM). ICM may permit the exclusion of nonrelevant cells. The ability of the two methods to detect nondiploid stemlines was compared, as were the prognostic consequences. The patients (54 males) had a median age of 69 years. Surgical procedures were performed on all patients. None of the patients had received preoperative radiotherapy or chemotherapy. FCM and ICM were performed with standard methods. The prognostic value was assessed with univariate and multivariate analysis. In 82 of the 93 tumors, a concordant ploidy status by FCM and ICM was found. In 5 FCM type 1-2 tumors (diploid), the identification of nondiploid stemlines by ICM did not influence the metastatic rates. Increasing tumor size, histotype other than liposarcoma, increasing malignancy grade, tumor necrosis, and ICM nondiploidy were univariate prognostic factors for metastasis. In a multivariate analysis, only tumor size larger than 9 cm was a prognostic factor. In about 10% of the tumors, a discrepancy between FCM and ICM ploidy status was found, but we could not find a consistent prognostic consequence of this. Neither FCM nor ICM ploidy status was an independent prognostic factor. (C) 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Subject headings

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Klinisk medicin -- Cancer och onkologi (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Clinical Medicine -- Cancer and Oncology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Adolescent

Adult

Aged

Aged, 80 and over

Child

Child, Preschool

DNA, Neoplasm/analysis

Female

Flow Cytometry/methods

Humans

Image Cytometry/methods

Infant

Male

Middle Aged

Neoplasm Staging

Ploidies

Prognosis

Sarcoma/genetics

Soft Tissue Neoplasms/genetics

Publication and Content Type

art (subject category)

ref (subject category)