[Chromosomal imbalances and survival in patients with astrocytomas]
Enrique López-Aguilar1, Ana Rioscovian-Soto, Yadira Betanzos-Cabrera
1Servicio de Oncología, Hospital de Pediatría, Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Distrito Federal, México. onco_lab@yahoo.com.mx.
Background:
Cytogenetics has revealed that the development of brain tumors might be induced by molecular alterations. The association of chromosomal imbalances with survival will allow for the prognosis and treatment of these tumors to be assessed. The objective of this study was to determine chromosomal imbalances and overall and disease-free survival in pediatric patients with astrocytoma and the association between chromosomal imbalances and survival.
Methods:
Medical charts of patients diagnosed with astrocytoma according to records from 1995 to 2005 were reviewed. Paraffin blocks were retrieved in order to extract tumor material and a comparative genomic hybridization technique was used to search for chromosomal gains and losses.
Results:
Out of 35 patients, 31 had at least some alteration in chromosomes 1, 5, 9 or 18, the latter with gains or losses in 65.7 % of the patients. By histology, 7/9 pilocytic astrocytomas had alteration of chromosome 9, and in 5/6 anaplastic astrocytomas, of chromosome 18. Patients with alterations in these chromosomes had a worse survival.
Conclusions:
The results of this study suggest that there is an association between the anaplastic histology and chromosome 18 alterations, as well as between diffuse astrocytoma and alterations in chromosome 5, which could be relevant in the Latin American population.
