Cytogenetic characterization of Ewing tumors with high-ploidy.
The formation of a high-ploidy is rare in Ewing tumor (ET) and is in contrast to some other childhood tumors such as neuroblastoma. In a series of 37 Ewing tumors analyzed by conventional cytogenetics, 4 of the 34 tumors with an abnormal clone (11.8%) demonstrated the presence of a high-ploidy clone, with a chromosome number that ranged from hypotriploid to pentaploid. All 4 contained a t(11;22)(q24;q12) and the karyotypes had further aberrations of the type that would be generally expected in ET. Numerical aberrations represented the majority of the karyotypic events identified and gain of chromosome 8 and loss of chromosomes 3, 10, 16, 19, and 22 occurred in at least 3 tumors. However, no single mechanism could be implicated to explain the karyotypic picture of the 4 cases. It is proposed that high-ploidy subgroups exist in ET and it would be potentially erroneous to group these and other cases together when determining their clinical implications.
Betts
David R
DR
Department of Oncology, University Children's Hospital, Steinwiesstrasse 75, CH-8032 Zürich, Switzerland. david.betts@kispi.unizh.ch
Avoledo
Pierino
P
von der Weid
Nicolas
N
Greiner
Jeanette
J
Niggli
Felix K
FK
D000293:Adolescent; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007621:Karyotyping; D008297:Male; D011123:Polyploidy; D012512:Sarcoma, Ewing / Q000235:genetics*; D014178:Translocation, Genetic