Objective: To determine the utility of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) ploidy pattern, detected by flow cytometry, in predicting the outcome of renal cell carcinoma (RCC).
Patients and methods: DNA content was retrospectively assessed by flow cytometry in 28 primary paraffin-embedded RCCs from 24 patients (16 men and eight women, mean age 61.9 years, range 40-89) who had undergone renal parenchymal-sparing surgery.
Results: Tumour recurred locally in three patients, two with diploid tumours and one with aneuploid tumour. Two patients with diploid tumours had metastatic disease 11-58 months after surgery. Only one patient with aneuploid tumour developed metastatic disease. There was no difference in local recurrence or metastases with the type of renal parenchymal-sparing surgery used (enucleation or partial nephrectomy) nor any significant difference in overall survival (P = 0.11).
Conclusion: While DNA content might be of considerable predictive value for patients with RCC, these results showed that there was no difference in mortality rate, recurrence rate, or type of renal parenchymal-sparing surgery used between aneuploid and diploid tumours.