Cellular radiosensitivity of patients with papillary thyroid cancer

Abstract Cultured skin fibroblasts from patients with papillary (differentiated) thyroid carcinomas were compared to those from healthy subjects, ataxia telangiectasia (AT) homozygotes and AT heterozygotes for colony-forming ability after low dose-rate irradiation, and post-irradiation DNA synthesis as indicated by uptake of [ 3 H]-thymidine. The cells from the cancer patients exhibited enhanced radiosensitivity (intermediate between normal and AT) and less than normal level of radioinduced inhibition of DNA synthesis.