[Flow cytometric bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU)/DNA analysis using fresh solid tumors and its clinical significance]

It is very important to determine the biological characteristics of individual cancers, not only in order to evaluate malignant potentials but also to decide on the most effective anticancer therapy. A method which combines BrdU labeling and flow cytometric bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU)/DNA analysis makes it possible to plot the DNA synthetic rate of cells against their DNA content. Hence, this method yields more useful information than the previous method of flow cytometric DNA analysis. When this method is performed correctly, it can be also applied to fresh solid tumors. In this paper, we will describe the results of our preliminary investigation and discuss its clinical significance.