Testicular seminoma: clinical significance of nuclear deoxyribonucleic acid ploidy pattern as studied by flow cytometry.

Abstract

We evaluated the clinical significance of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) ploidy pattern as a predictor of prognosis in patients with testicular seminoma. Flow cytometric nuclear DNA analysis was performed on archival specimens from 65 patients with pure seminoma who underwent radical orchiectomy between 1970 and 1992. A total of 42 specimens (65%) exhibited a DNA diploid pattern, while 23 (35%) were DNA aneuploid. Diploidy was manifested in 73% of the stage I tumors versus 31% of stage II cancers (p = 0.004). No correlation was found between ploidy and histological type, size or local extension of the tumor. Tumor progression was observed in 5 patients, exclusively displaying aneuploid histograms (p = 0.0017), and 3 of them subsequently died of the disease. DNA ploidy pattern may provide important prognostic information for patients with testicular seminoma.