Histochemical Evaluation of Cellular Proliferative Activity in Thyroid Hyperplasia and Neoplasia by using Feulgen DNA Stain

Abstract

This is a descriptive prospective study to assess the cellular proliferative activity in thyroid fine-needle aspiration (FNA) materials. The study was conducted in Khartoum during the period from November 2008 to March 2009. FNA Materials, were obtained from 50 patients (46 females and 4 males), with thyroid palpable lumps. Their ages ranging from 19 to 85 years with a mean age of 40 years old. The diagnoses of the 50 thyroid FNAs were as follows: 3 (6%) were smears showing atypical cell, 9(18%) were showing thyroid hyperplastic cells, 34(68%) were found with normal thyroid cells and 4 (8%) were identified as non-representative smears. All of the nine smears that were taken from the patients with thyroid hyperplasia and one smear from a patient with atypical thyroid cells, have showed intense DNA staining (++) by Feulgen staining method. All smears that were diagnosed as containing normal thyroid cells 34(68%) and 2 (4%) of those showing atypical thyroid cells had mild staining intensity.