Flow cytometric analysis of squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between anatomic location and the cytogenetic and cytokinetic characteristics of squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue to determine the diagnostic and prognostic potential of flow cytometry. Fifty-two archival, paraffin-embedded specimens of squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue in clinical stages I-IV acquired from 1975 to the present were analyzed with an ELITE flow cytometer (Coulter Diagnostics, Opa Locka, FL). Histopathologic grading was performed by the same pathologist based on tumor differentiation. Of the 40 specimens found suitable for analysis, several correlations were noted. First, as the clinical stage increased, the % S-phase increased. Second, there was no correlation between the histologic grade and the % S-phase. Finally, the % S-phase was higher in those tumors with nodal involvement.