[Cytostatic effects on nucleic acid synthesis in primary tumors and lymph node metastases of human breast cancer (author's transl)].

Nucleic acid synthesis and influence of cytostatic agents (adriamycin, cyclophosphamide) were investigated in 73 cases of human breast cancer and in 19 cases of correlating lymph node metastases. An interrelationship between nucleic acid synthesis, proliferation and tumor stage could not be proven at the time of the operation. The labeling index, expressing the proliferation of tumor cells, and the incorporation of radiolabeled nucleic acid precursors (3H-thymidine, 3H-uridine) as an indicator of nucleic acid synthesis were higher in the investigated lymph node metastases than in the primary tumor. Nucleic acid synthesis was suppressed in primary and metastatic lesions in the same way by cytostatic agents.