ACOUSTIC SCHWANNOMA AND PREGNANCY - A DNA FLOW CYTOMETRIC, STEROID-HORMONE RECEPTOR, AND PROLIFERATION MARKER STUDY

For a long time, it has been speculated that pregnancy stimulates the growth of acoustic schwannomas. To test this hypothesis, immunohistoch emical stains for estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and prolif erating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) were performed. Flow cytometric st udies for DNA ploidy and S-phase fraction determinations were also per formed, The study subjects included 6 female patients with unilateral acoustic tumors; at the time of tumor removal, 1 woman was pregnant an d the other 5 women were 2 to 10 months postpartum. The age-sex-matche d control group consisted of 6 men and 12 nonpregnant women, all with acoustic schwannomas similar in size to those of the study group. The study found no statistically significant association between the prese nce or quantity of estrogen or progesterone receptors and pregnancy, D NA ploidy, proliferation indices, or clinical data. Based on PCNA indi ces, large tumors tended to be less ''biologically active'' than small lesions (P<.01). The authors concluded that pregnancy does not signif icantly stimulate the cellular growth of acoustic schwannomas.