[Cytophotometric and automated cytodiagnosis]

The different validity of DNA-cytophotometric parameters to morphometric ones for the automated cytological diagnosis of cancer is discussed and demonstrated for prostatic-, cervical- and lymph-node cytology by own measurements. Nuclear-DNA-cytophotometry used for the automation of cytological diagnosis of malignancy has the following advantages compared to image analysis: 1) DNA-cytophotometry mostly yields more sensitive parameters for the diagnosis of malignancy than image analysis does and thus results in greater diagnostic accuracy. 2) Cytological diagnosis of malignancy may often be possible in earlier stages of the tumor-history with nuclear-DNA-parameters compared to morphological parameters. 3) The prognostic validity of nuclear-DNA-distribution is probably greater than of cytomorphological parameters. 4) The parameters of nuclear-DNA-distribution for cytodiagnosis and grading of malignancy are the same for most of the human tumors in contrast to morphological parameters which are different for histogenetically different tumor. 5) Processing time for the automated diagnostic procedure of the slides will be much shorter if the Feulgen-stain for DNA is used instead of the Papanicolaou-stain for image analysis. One disadvantage of nuclear DNA-measurements as a diagnostic toll is the fact that cytopathologists cannot fully control the diagnostic process and results with their own eyes in Feulgen-stained slides. Meanwhile, however, even in other medical disciplines diagnosis are made by objective measurements of parameters which are not discernible by the human eye. That diagnostic procedure has to be accepted which yields the most accurate and reproducible diagnosis in the shortest time. It is recommended to combine cytomorphological and DNA-cytophotometric parameters as diagnostic tools for automated cytodiagnosis in Feulgen-stained slides.