Abstract
A molecular analysis has three major roles in modern oncopathology - as an aid in the differential diagnosis, in molecular monitoring of diseases, and in estimation of the potential prognosis. In this report we review the application of the molecular analysis in a group of patients with mantle cell lymphoma (MCL).
We demonstrate that detection of the cyclin D1 mRNA level is a molecular marker in 98 % of patients with MCL. Cyclin D1 quantitative monitoring is specific and sensitive for the differential diagnosis and for the molecular monitoring of the disease in the bone marrow.
Moreover, the dynamics of cyclin D1 in bone marrow reflects the disease development and it predicts the clinical course. We employed the molecular analysis for a precise quantitative detection of proliferation markers, Ki-67, topoisomerase II?, and TPX2, that are described as effective prognostic factors.
Using the molecular approach it is possible to measure the proliferation rate in a reproducible, standard way which is an essential prerequisite for using the proliferation activity as a routine clinical tool. Comparing with immunophenotyping we may conclude that the quantitative PCR-based analysis is a useful, reliable, rapid, reproducible, sensitive and specific method broadening our diagnostic tools in hematopathology.
In comparison to interphase FISH in paraffin sections quantitative PCR is less technically demanding and less time-consuming and furthermore it is more sensitive in detecting small changes in the mRNA level. Moreover, quantitative PCR is the only technology which provides precise and reproducible quantitative information about the expression level.
Therefore it may be used to demonstrate the decrease or increase of a tumor-specific marker in bone marrow in comparison with a previously aspirated specimen. Thus, it has a powerful potential to monitor the course of the disease in correlation with clinical data.