[Cytology and enzymocytochemistry of nodose hyperplasia and cancer of the prostate].

In cytological investigations the following forms of cancer of the prostate may be verified: differentiated (clear-cellular and dark-cellular adenocarcinoma); poorly differentiated; and nondifferentiated (microcellular and polymorphic-cellular cancer). In the unchanged epithelium of the prostate there was noted a high activity of acid phosphotase, nonspecific esterase, nonspecific 5'-exonuclease, acid RNA-ase, acid DNA-ase, leucine aminopeptidase, and the absence of activity of alkaline phosphotase, neutral DNA-ase, alkaline RNA-ase. In the cancerous epithelium the activity of leucine aminopeptidase was either drastically decreased or absent altogether; the activity of acid DNA-ase and acid RNA-ase was non-uniform with the tendency to decrease in poorly differentiated tumours. The activity of other investigated enzymes in the cancerous epithelium showed no significant changes. At early stages of development of squamous cell metaplasia in the epithelium there was identified alkaline RNA-ase dissapearing in manifested metaplastic changes.