Abstract
The relationship between the nuclear DNA content of tumor cells in brushing smears and clinical behavior of 36 patients with small cell carcinoma of the lung was investigated.
The brushing smears were stained by a modified Feulgen method. The nuclear DNA content was measured at 550nm using a microspectrophotometer. The DNA distribution pattern was classified into types A and B according to the degree of dispersion on the nuclear DNA histogram—Type A containing a higher propotion of G0G1-phase nuclei, and Type B containing a higher proportion of S- and G2M-phase nuclei.
The survival time of patients with Type A histogram pattern was longer than that of patients with Type B histogram pattern. A distinct correlation was found between the histogram pattern of nuclear DNA content and the survival time of the patients. These results indicated that, based on nuclear DNA content, it was possible to estimate the prognosis of patients with small cell carcinoma of the lung.
