Apoptosis and nuclear shapes in benign prostate hyperplasia and prostate adenocarcinoma: Comparison with and relation to Gleason score

Propose: So compare differences in the number of apoptotic bodies and nucle ar shapes (size and roundness) between untreated benign prostate hyperplasi a (BPH) and untreated advanced prostate adenocarcinoma (PCA) and to elucida te differences in apoptosis number and nuclear shapes with increasing malig nant potentiality, by Gleason score, in PCA. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on 40 patients with BPH and 12 patients with PCA I (Gleason score 2-4), 14 patients with PCA II (Gleason score 5-7) and 14 patients with PCA III (Gleason score 8-10). The frequency of apoptotic bodies (mean percentage calculated from 200 cells/high-power field over 10 fields) was examined on immunostain. Nuclear shapes were dete rmined by an automatic image analyzer. Over 100 hyperplastic cells or cance r cells were detected by the image analyzer. Results: The mean number of apoptotic bodies in BPH and PCA I were not sign ificantly different, but patients with PCA IT and PCA III showed significan tly higher numbers of apoptotic bodies than patients with BPH. Patients wit h PCA III had significantly more apoptotic bodies than patients with PCA I. Benign prostate hyperplasia nuclei had the smallest mean nuclear area and the largest mean nuclear peripheral ellipse among the four groups. The stud y showed that PCA I. II. III nuclei had significantly larger areas and a le ss circular shape than nuclei from patients with BPH. Nuclei from patients with PCA I were smaller in size and rounder than nuclei from patients with PCA III. Conclusions: The present study clearly shows the presence of apoptosis in B PH and PCA and shows an increasing number of apoptotic bodies with higher c ellular malignancy. The nuclear shapes in PCA were more irregular and large r in size with increasing cellular malignancy. As expected nuclei in BPH we re smaller in size and rounder than those of cancer nuclei.