ARUP's Laboratory Test Directory

DNA Content/Cell Cycle Analysis, Breast (Paraffin) : 0095735

Mnemonic: DNA HIST P

Methodology: Quantitative Flow Cytometry
Performed: Sun, Tue
Reported: 3-9 days
Specimen Required: Collect: Breast tumor tissue.

Specimen Preparation: Paraffin embed tissue block enriched with breast tumor. If no normal tissue is included in the block, supply a control tissue block to be processed in parallel.

Storage/Transport Temperature: Room temperature.

Remarks: Include H&E stained slide and surgical pathology report.

Unacceptable Conditions: No tumor tissue remaining on block. Specimens fixed in Bouin's solution (picric acid), mercuric chloride containing fixatives (e.g., B5, Zenker's solution), or ethanol-based fixatives containing ethylene glycol, acetic acid, or zinc chloride. Decalcified specimens.

Stability (collection to initiation of testing): Paraffin block: Ambient: Indefinitely; Refrigerated: Indefinitely; Frozen: Unacceptable

Reference Interval:
Report components include: DNA content, S-phase interpretation, and a copy of the histogram.
Interpretive Data: In breast cancer, many studies indicate that low S-phase and diploid DNA content are associated with a relatively good prognosis. Conversely, the presence of aneuploid DNA content and a high S-phase tends to correlate with a worse prognosis.

See Compliance Statement B: www.aruplab.com/CS
Note: A thin section of each tissue submitted is stained with H & E to verify the presence of tumor. The DNA content of each tumor is classified, in order of worsening prognosis, as diploid, near diploid, tetraploid, aneuploid, or hypertetraploid. The DNA index is the ratio of tumor G0-G1 cells to normal G0-G1 cells.

The tumor-specific S-phase is used when possible. An average histogram S-phase is used for diploid and some aneuploid tumors where the tumor and host S-phases cannot be separated. An average histogram S-phase is also used when the percentage of aneuploid cells in the histogram is low (less than 25%). The S-phase interpretation is based on comparison to over 5,000 breast tumors, controlled for histogram type (diploid, near-diploid, aneuploid) and sample type (fresh/frozen, paraffin). The appropriate population is divided into thirds and compared to the sample S-phase for an interpretation of low, moderate, or high S-phase.
CPT Code(s): 88182
Cross References: DNA Ploidy and S-Phase (DNA Content/Cell Cycle Analysis, Breast (Paraffin))