USE OF HIGH-RESOLUTION CYTOMETRY IN PREDICTING THE BIOLOGIC BEHAVIOR OF T1 ADENOCARCINOMA OF THE LUNG

Touch preparations from 60 cases of T1 adenocarcinoma were analyzed us ing a high-resolution, automated image cytometer. These cases were div ided according to pathologic stage: stage I, 31; stage II, 3; stage II I, 19; and stage IV, 7. For each nucleus 57 features were analyzed, an d using a linear combination of three texture features describing the DNA distribution in the cell nucleus (TARL, ODMAX and FAREA1), aggress ive cancer cells belonging to stage III/IV could be identified. The be st discrimination between the stages was achieved when the frequency o f aggressive cancer cells was 48%; the correct classification rate was 77%. Using this criterion, 22 of 27 patients (81%) who died of cancer within five years after surgery were correctly predicted. These resul ts suggest that high-resolution cytometry may be of value in predictin g the biologic behavior of adenocarcinoma cases, especially in stage I /II.