L. Ottesdad et al., FLOW CYTOMETRIC DNA ANALYSIS AS PROGNOSTIC FACTOR IN HUMAN BREAST-CARCINOMA, Pathology research and practice, 189(4), 1993, pp. 405-410
Fresh tumour tissue from 198 primary invasive breast carcinomas was an
alysed by DNA flow cytometry. 108 tumours were non-diploid. A signific
antly higher proportion of non-diploid tumours was found among node-po
sitive patients, patients with oestrogen receptor negative tumours and
among patients with ductal carcinomas. The survival of patients with
diploid and non-diploid tumours was not significantly different (p = 0
.1). Totally, 145 tumours were analysed with respect to S-phase fracti
on (SPF). The distribution of SPF was different in diploid and non-dip
loid tumours. A low SPF group, defined as the lower SPF quartile (less
-than-or-equal-to 4.6 % in diploid and less-than-or-equal-to 8.S % in
non-diploid tumours), was associated with highly differentiated tumour
s and oestrogen receptor positive tumours. Histological grading reveal
ed a highly significant correlation to SPF. 57 % of ductal carcinomas
grade I (8 out of 14), 30 % of ductal carcinomas grade II (20 out of 6
7) and S % of ductal carcinomas grade III (2 out of 37) had a low SPF.
Patients within the low SPF group had a significantly longer survival
than had patients within the high SPF group (p = 0.006). In a multiva
riate analysis the SPF was found to be an additional prognostic factor
next to node status and ER status.