An analysis of the DNA ploidy patterns of gastric cancer

This article deals with DNA measurements by fluorometry of nuclei in 33 freshly obtained specimens and in 109 fixed specimens of gastric cancer in Japanese patients. Histograms of the DNA measurements can be classified into four types (Ia, Ib, II, III). The nuclear DNA patterns had definite, if not significant, correlations with clinical and histologic parameters. For example, 88.2% of the cases classified as Type III were advanced stage disease, whereas early stage cases were predominant in Type Ia. Type II and III were frequently found in hepatic, peritoneal, and lymph node metastasis. The rate of occurrence of polyploid cells was significantly higher in the group with hepatic or lymph node metastasis than in the other group without metastasis. The results of this study show that fluorometric measurement of nuclear DNA is considered one method of determining the biological activity of gastric cancer cells.