Prognostic value of mitotic studies in myeloid leukaemias.

Seven patients with various forms of myeloid leukaemia have been studied by repeated sternal punctures during the course of illness. None of the patients received cytostatics before or during the study. The mitotic indices declined with time and there was a significant relation between the slopes of the mitotic curves and survival time. Repeated mitotic counts seem to serve as a diagnostic and prognostic tool in myeloid leukaemias.