BACKGROUND: To evaluate the frequency of tumor cell contamination in autologous peripheral-blood progenitor cells from patients with ovarian cancer, and to determine the impact of infusing such cells on relapses after high-dose chemotherapy. METHODS: Seventy-three samples of peripheral-blood progenitor cells from 24 ovarian cancer patients were studied for contaminated tumor cells by cytokeratin 7 and cytokeratin 20 reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS: Tumor cell contamination in peripheral-blood progenitor cells was detected in 11 of 24 patients (46%) and, among these, in four of 11 patients who received transplantations of peripheral-blood progenitor cells. There was no trend towards longer relapse-free survival in patients infused with cytokeratin-negative peripheral-blood progenitor cells as compared with positive ones. Interestingly, two of four patients who received transplantations of peripheral-blood progenitor cells containing tumor cells were free from progression at 20 and 41 months after transplantation. CONCLUSION: Tumor cell contamination of peripheral-blood progenitor cells was frequently noted by transcriptase polymerase chain reaction in patients with ovarian cancer. The biological and clinical significance of this finding remains to be elucidated.
BACKGROUND: To evaluate the frequency of tumor cell contamination in autologous peripheral-blood progenitor cells from patients with ovarian cancer, and to determine the impact of infusing such cells on relapses after high-dose chemotherapy. METHODS: Seventy-three samples of peripheral-blood progenitor cells from 24 ovarian cancerpatients were studied for contaminated tumor cells by cytokeratin 7 and cytokeratin 20 reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS:Tumor cell contamination in peripheral-blood progenitor cells was detected in 11 of 24 patients (46%) and, among these, in four of 11 patients who received transplantations of peripheral-blood progenitor cells. There was no trend towards longer relapse-free survival in patients infused with cytokeratin-negative peripheral-blood progenitor cells as compared with positive ones. Interestingly, two of four patients who received transplantations of peripheral-blood progenitor cells containing tumor cells were free from progression at 20 and 41 months after transplantation. CONCLUSION:Tumor cell contamination of peripheral-blood progenitor cells was frequently noted by transcriptase polymerase chain reaction in patients with ovarian cancer. The biological and clinical significance of this finding remains to be elucidated.