The correlation of cytologic degree of differentiation of infiltrative ductal breast carcinoma and cytochemical activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase.

The semiquantitative cytochemical activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase in imprints of surgical biopsies of 55 patients with invasive ductal breast carcinomas was compared to the cytologic degree of differentiation. All carcinomas cytologically designated as well differentiated had a low enzyme activity. Approximately half of moderately differentiated carcinomas were characterized with low score of enzyme activity and only 2 out of 26 poorly differentiated tumors had the low enzyme activity. The estimation of cytochemical activity of this enzyme may be valuable as the morphologic parameter for cytologic evaluation of malignant cells.