The Detection of Telomerase Activity in Exfoliated Cells of Primary Lung Cancer and its Clinical Implication

Objective To access the clinic significance of telomerase activity in exfoliated cells of bronchoaleolar lavage fluid(BALF) and sputum from patients with lung cancer.Methods 63 BALF of lung cancer and 31 BALF of non lung cancer lung diseases were collected.At the same time the brush cytology and BALF cytology examination were carried out.34 sputum of lung cancer and 31 sputum of non lung cancer lung disease were collected.The telomerase activity was measured with the modified telomeric repeats amplification protocol(TRAP).Results Telomerase activity was present in 48 out of 63 BALF of lung cancer,2 out of 31 BALF of non lung cancer lung diseases( P 0.01);10 out of 34 sputum of lung cancer,1 out of 31 sputum of non lung cancer lung disease( P 0.01).The positive rates of brush cytology and BALF cytology were 58.7%(37/63) and 14.3%(9/63) respectively,lower than that of telomerase activity detection of BALF( P 0.05, P 0.01).Conclusion Telomerase activity is present in exfoliated cells of BALF and sputum.Telomerase activity detection have high sensitivity and high specificity for diagnosis of lung cancer.The telomerase detection of BALF and sputum is useful for diagnosis of lung cancer.