FLOW-CYTOMETRY IN CERVICAL ADENOCARCINOMA - CORRELATING DNA CONTENT-ANALYSIS WITH THE CLINICAL PICTURE

OBJECTIVE: DNA quantitation by flow cytometry teas used in this study to determine prognosis in stage I adenocarcinoma of the uterine cervix with negative pelvic lymph nodes. STUDY DESIGN: DNA content and proli feration index were determined by flow cytometry on formalin-fixed, pa raffin-embedded tissue from 29 patients with stage I, pelvic lymph nod e-negative adenocarcinoma of the cervix. Using Student's t test, the r esults were correlated with tumor recurrence after 57 +/- 8 months.RES ULTS: Diploid DNA content predominated (79%), whereas only 21% of the tumors were aneuploid. There was recurrence of the tumor in five cases (17%); two tumors were aneuploid, and three were euploid. The recurre nce rate among the aneuploid population of 33% (2 of 6) was not statis tically significant as compared to 13% (3 of 23) in the diploid popula tion (P>.2). Similarly, the mean proliferation index (percentage in S plus G(2)/M phases) of the tumors in patients with recurrence was 13.7 +/- 3.68 %, which was not significantly different from those that did not recur (mean 15.6 +/- 3.49%). CONCLUSION: DNA content analysis and proliferative activity do not predict recurrence in stage I, pelvic l ymph node-negative adenocarcinoma of the uterine cervix.