Cell invasiveness in sarcomas: a possibly useful clinical correlation.
OBJECTIVE
The prognosis of each individual patient affected by sarcoma, including those with low histopathologic grading, cannot be reliably predicted at the time of surgery. We have developed an in vitro cell invasion assay on early primary cell cultures derived from surgically removed sarcomas.


METHODS
Primary cell cultures were subjected to in vitro cell invasion assays by using Boyden chambers, filters coated with matrigel and fetal bovine serum as a source of chemoattractant. For each primary cell culture, the sarcoma cell invasion index was determined in comparison with the percentage of human fibrosarcoma HT1080 cell invasion extent. The cell invasion index of 7 different sarcomas was evaluated in respect to the outcome of the disease, after a follow-up ranging from 14 to 48 months.


RESULTS
Data evidenced that a low cell invasion index (39.7% +/- 8.9) was retained by tumor cells derived from patients with no progression of the disease and with a longer interval of disease-free survival (21 +/- 0.8 months). However, an increase in cell invasion index (61% +/- 5) was retained by tumor cells derived from patients with progression of the disease and with a shorter disease-free survival (9 +/- 3 months). Overall, although only 7 cases were analyzed, a statistically significant correlation was found between disease-free survival and cell invasion index (P = 0.003).


CONCLUSIONS
Our data support the possibility that cell invasion assays performed in vitro on cells derived from human sarcomas may be predictive of a more aggressive form of the disease.
Bifulco
Katia
K
Department of Experimental Oncology, National Cancer Institute of Naples, Naples, Italy.
De Chiara
Annarosaria
A
Fazioli
Flavio
F
Longanesi-Cattani
Immacolata
I
Cantelmo
Anna Rita
AR
Tirino
Virginia
V
Apice
Gaetano
G
Rocco
Gaetano
G
Lombardi
Maria Luisa
ML
Carriero
Maria Vincenza
MV
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002813:Chondrosarcoma / Q000473:pathology; D003094:Collagen; D018450:Disease Progression; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D004338:Drug Combinations; D005260:Female; D005350:Fibroma / Q000473:pathology; D005354:Fibrosarcoma / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007797:Laminin; D018208:Liposarcoma, Myxoid / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009361:Neoplasm Invasiveness; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D011509:Proteoglycans; D012509:Sarcoma / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
D004338:Drug Combinations; D007797:Laminin; D011509:Proteoglycans; C059485:matrigel; D003094:Collagen