COMPARISON OF CYTOGENETICS, INTERPHASE CYTOGENETICS, AND DNA FLOW-CYTOMETRY IN BONE-TUMORS

Twenty-three samples of benign and malignant bone tumors were studied with cytogenetic analysis, interphase cytogenetics (IC) using in situ hybridization with (peri)centromeric probes for chromosomes 1, 7, and/ or 8, and DNA flow cytometry (FCM). Our aim was to compare these metho ds in the detection of numerical chromosome aberrations (NCA) and aneu ploidy. IC detected aneuploidy in 91%, FCM in 73%, and cytogenetics in 27% of the malignant tumors. In benign tumors IC detected aneuploidy in 4 (33%), FCM in 2 (17%), and cytogenetic analysis in 1. All of the benign tumors aneuploid by IC, two of which were also aneuploid by FCM , were histologically potentially aggressive. The clonal aberrations d etected with cytogenetics usually agreed with the IO and FCM findings. All malignant tumors which had a normal karyotype were aneuploid eith er by IC or FCM or by both. In conclusion, IC was the most sensitive m ethod in the detection of NCA and aneuploidy even though it was usuall y performed with only two (peri)centromeric probes. Aneuploidy was det ected by cytogenetic analysis alone in 4 samples (17%), by cytogenetic analysis and/or FCM in 11 samples (48%), and by cytogenetic analysis, FCM, and/or IC in 16 samples (70%). Thus, the combined use of all thr ee methods increased the sensitivity of aneuploidy detection. (C) 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.