EFFECTS OF SHORT-TERM CULTURE ON BENIGN AND MALIGNANT HUMAN BREAST EPITHELIUM ANALYZED BY IMAGE-ANALYSIS

The ability to culture malignant breast cells is crucial to the succes s of many scientific studies. However, short-term cultures of breast c ancers are composed predominantly of DNA diploid cells, leading to dou bt regarding the presence of bonafide cancer cells in these cultures. Morphology by conventional light microscopy is not helpful since cultu red benign cells take on features usually associated with malignancy. In this study we examined by image analysis both benign and malignant breast cancer cells before and after culture. Consistent changes in bo th benign and malignant cells were found following culturing. There al so were consistent differences distinguishing the cultures derived fro m benign and malignant specimens. While the features used were not suf ficiently powerful to identify individual cells or cultures as benign or malignant, our results strongly suggest that malignant breast cells do indeed row in short-term cultures.