CLINICAL USEFULNESS OF AN ATP HEAT SENSITIVITY TEST USING ENDOSCOPIC BIOPSY MATERIALS FROM ESOPHAGEAL CANCER-PATIENTS

The usefulness of a heat sensitivity test which involved performing an ATP assay on endoscopic biopsy materials for predicting the clinical response to hyperthermia was investigated in esophageal cancer patient s. Following in vitro heat treatment of FM3A tumor cells, the heat sen sitivity detected by ATPA was significantly correlated with that in th e colony-forming assay, and the percent inhibition of the ATP level in the tumor cells was correlated with in vivo tumor growth. The heat se nsitivity of the biopsy materials evaluated by ATPA correlated well wi th that of the resected specimens in 18 esophageal cancer patients, wh ile the clinical response to thermal therapy was well predicted by the heat sensitivity of the biopsy materials evaluated by ATPA in seven o f the patients. These results indicate that the heat sensitivity test conducted by performing an ATPA on endoscopic biopsy materials could b e a useful indicator for predicting the clinical response to thermal t herapy.