A trial of the in vitro sensitivity test of anti-cancer drugs using primary cultured urogenital cancer cells.

An in vitro chemosensitivity test was applied to clinical specimens of urogenital cancer tissues obtained at operation. Incorporation of 3H-leucine into primary cultured cells 24 h after treatment with cytotoxic drugs was used as an index for cell viability. Primary cell culture was performed using specimens obtained from 37 patients including 20 with transitional cell carcinoma, 15 with renal cell carcinoma and 2 with testicular cancer. Primary cell growth was achieved in 27 (73%) out of 37 specimens and 10 were tested for chemosensitivity. Each specimen of the tumor revealed different sensitivity to drugs, and results of quadruplicate tests for each specimen were identical. It was concluded that the present method of measuring incorporation of radioactivity using urogenital cancer cells primarily cultured in microtiter plate is practically applicable to an in vitro chemosensitivity test.