[Application of image cytometry to cytological diagnosis of breast tumors].
Computerized morphological analysis of the cell nuclei was performed on 66 cases (2222 nuclei) of aspirated materials from breast tumors: 25 benign cases (302 nuclei), 41 malignant cases (1420 nuclei). Its diagnostic significance and the correlation between nuclear analysis and clinical staging were studied. Nuclear diagram and intranuclear chromatin distribution pattern were evaluated using computer system named 6400. The malignant tumor had larger, more round-shaped nuclei and less uniform chromatin distribution. Under tnm classification, stage IV tumors had larger, more flattened nuclei and more irregular chromatin distribution pattern than the others. Computerized morphological analysis of breast tumors may give a quantitative aspect to classical diagnostic process. Furthermore, this analytical method provides information on clinical stage of breast cancer.