Flow cytometry of classical
neuroblastoma has provided provocative evidence that cell cycle and ploidy analysis generate prognostically useful information. To determine whether such analyses of
peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumors might yield similar results,
formalin-fixed,
paraffin-embedded tissue specimens from 19
peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumors, each previously characterized by immunohistochemical or ultrastructural study, were assessed. An acceptable histogram was obtained in 16 cases. Of these, nine
neoplasms were diploid and seven contained
aneuploid DNA. Among patients with diploid lesions, four were free of disease, whereas three had persistent or recurrent disease, and two had died of
tumor. Among patients with
aneuploid neoplasms, four were free of disease, one had recurrence, and two had died. There was no apparent correlation between immunophenotype and proliferative activity with the clinical outcome. Among
aneuploid peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumors,
DNA index did not predict survival. Hence, cell cycle and
DNA ploidy analyses do not appear to contribute to the prognostic assessment of
peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumors, as they do to presumably related
neoplasms of the central and peripheral nervous system.