Flow cytometric analysis of nuclear DNA content in patients with recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer

Numerous reports have recently indicated that the DNA content of various malignant tumors can be of great value in predicting biological behavior and prognosis of the tumors. This study was undertaken to determine the nuclear DNA content in the primary and recurrent ovarian carcinoma of the same 20 consecutive patients by flow cytometry, and the results on clinical outcome was examined. The tissue samples of the recurrent tumors were obtained at second-look laparotomy. Of the primary tumors, 12 were diploid, 4 were pure aneuploid, and 4 were "mosaic", while of the recurrent tumors, 17 were diploid and 3 showed pure aneuploid. No significant difference of the DNA index at recurrence was observed. DNA ploidy was preserved in 12 out of 20 patients at recurrence. The time to recurrence after the initial treatment showed no significant difference versus DNA ploidy and change of ploidy. The sites and status of recurrence differed by DNA ploidy. At recurrence, the patients with DNA diploidy had a tendency to survive longer than those with DNA aneuploidy. The determination of DNA ploidy at recurrence may be useful as a variable parameter in predicting the survival of patients with ovarian carcinomas.