Simple numerical chromosome aberrations in well-differentiated malignant epithelial tumors.
Cytogenetic analysis of four well-differentiated malignant epithelial tumors revealed primary clones with only numerical abnormalities. The karyotypes were 49,XX, +5, +5, +7, +7, -17/50,XX, +5, +5, +7, +7, -17, +r in an adenocarcinoma of the lung; 47,XX, +3/47,XX, +5/47,XX, +7 in a squamous cell carcinoma of the epiglottis; 47,XX, +5/48,XX, +5, +10 in a squamous cell carcinoma developing in an ovarian dermoid cyst; and 52,XX, +5, +7, +8, +14, +15, +21 in a seropapillary ovarian adenocarcinoma. Also, in previously published cases exclusively numerical aberrations were much more common in highly differentiated epithelial tumors (22/74) than in moderately to low-differentiated carcinomas (13/281). Our findings and the literature data thus agree with a developmental scheme in which numerical changes, possibly reflecting an early-onset genomic instability in the tumor cells, may precede massive structural anomalies in the gradual malignization of epithelial tumors.
Pejovic
T
T
Department of Clinical Genetics, University Hospital, Lund, Sweden.
Heim
S
S
Orndal
C
C
Jin
Y S
YS
Mandahl
N
N
Willén
H
H
Mitelman
F
F
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D002869:Chromosome Aberrations; D003536:Cystadenocarcinoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007621:Karyotyping; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology