CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, Vol 11, 55-57, Copyright
© 1961 by American Cancer Society
On the Use of Fluorescence Technique in Exfoliative Cytology
Winifred Liu M.D.1
1 Cytologist, The Youngstown Hospital Association, Youngstown, Ohio.
(1) The acridine orange fluorescence method used in exfoliative cytology does not save time or allow the employment of less skilled personnel. Most important of all, it lacks accuracy and cannot be relied on as a method for cytodiagnosis.
(2) At its best, it is hoped that the fluorescence technique may be used as a preliminary screening procedure before Papanicolaou screening. However, the nonspecificity of cellular fluorescence eliminates both normal and abnormal smears from being screened by the Papanicolaou method. Therefore, it is unsafe even for prescreening.
(3) In the present phase of the cancer campaign when cytology is beginning to be widely adopted with gratifying results, any modification of technique without good reasons will only bring confusion and defeat to the purpose of cancer education and control.
