Objective: To investigate the pathological changes after radiotherapy and its clinical significance of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).
Method: Paraffin-embedded tissue blocks obtained from 30 cases of NPC before and during radiotherapy were used in this study. Using terminal oxynucleotidyl transferase mediated dUTP biotin nick end labeling (TUNEL) and HE staining, the spontaneous and radiation-induced apoptotic rate (AR) were examined, and the pathological changes of NPC tissues before and after radiotherapy were compared.
Result: The AR of radiation-induced apoptosis was significant higher than that of spontaneous apoptosis, but the AR was decreasing and the differentiation of proliferatic tumor clonogehic cell getting better during radiotherapy of NPC.
Conclusion: The process of apoptosis was accelerated and the differentiation of proliferative tumor clonogehic cell getting better during radiotherapy of NPC.