DNA analysis by using flow cytometry on vesical biopsy specimens: Ploidy evaluation

Abstract

— The aim of this work is to assess the ploidy on a wide sample of biopsies, obtained from neoplastic or non-neoplastic vesical tissue, by using DNA flow cytometry (FCM). The Authors studied 837 biopsy specimens removed from 298 patients who underwent urethrocystoscopy because of bladder cancer in progress or in the past. Analysis of case histories shows that also normal histological urothelium presents aneuploidy in non-negligible percentages. Moreover the aneuploidy percentages progressively increase in aspecific inflammation, urothelial dysplasia and exfoliative cystitis, and reach the highest values in urothelial tumours. Lastly the relationship between ploidy and pathologic parameters is confirmed: in fact aneuploidy percentages increase according to the tumoral stage and the histological grade.