Histographic DNA pattern as an aid for diagnosis and therapy of minimal invasive endometrial cancer.

The atypical adenomatous hyperplasia of the endometrium may be considered as carcinoma in situ. The histologic diagnosis from curettings of passages to minimal invasive or occult carcinomas of the corpus uteri may be difficult. Also the determination of DNA in the cell nuclei and its histographic evaluation do not permit to differentiate between atypical hyperplasias and invasive adenocarcinomas. Only the early or minimal invasive carcinoma shows a higher rate of proliferation, assuming a stepwise development of carcinoma in which phases of activity and retirement are changing. In these cases the DNA photometry may support the histologic diagnosis of invasive growth and facilitate the choice of therapy.