Histiocytes in vaginal smears: as prognostic parameter in carcinoma of the uterine cervix

Pretreatment vaginal smears of 251 patients with carcinoma of the cervix were counted for the percentage of histiocyte count in relation to benign squamous epithelial cells. No correlation was found between the percentage of histiocyte count and the age of the patient, clinical stage, cell type of squamous cell carcinoma, and clinical radiation response. Also a high histiocyte count is found to be unrelated to 5-year survival, recurrence, metastasis, or death of these patients. The present study indicates that the histiocyte number appears to have no relationship with immediate or remote prognosis in patients with carcinoma of cervix uteri.