Factors influencing survival after resection of pancreatic cancer. A DNA analysis and a histomorphologic study.

Background: The influence of DNA content on prognosis in stomach cancer has been investigated rarely, and the results are controversial.
Method: The prognostic relevance of the DNA content and histomorphologic parameters was evaluated in 41 patients after resection of pancreatic cancer.
Results: In the univariate analysis, the DNA content, tumor size, lymph node status, tumor stage, nuclear grade, and type of resection had a statistically significant influence on the prognosis. No association was found between the DNA content and the histomorphologic features. Apart from the operative procedure, the DNA content was the strongest indicator of prognosis in the multivariate analysis.
Conclusions: Further investigations are necessary to find out if DNA analysis can be performed preoperatively on material obtained by fine-needle aspiration.