Comparison between the in vitro intrinsic radiation sensitivity of human soft tissue sarcoma and breast cancer cell lines

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the radiation sensitivity of human soft tissue sarcoma cell lines in vitro and to compare with that of human breast carcinoma and glioblastoma cell lines. The intrinsic radiation sensitivity parameters of seven human soft tissue sarcomas and eight breast carcinoma cell lines were investigated in vitro by clonogenic assays for single-dose irradiation under aerobic conditions on cells in exponential phase of growth. The results for sarcoma cell lines showed that the mean surviving fraction at 2 Gy (SF2) was 0.39 (SD +/- 0.09) with a range of 0.24 to 0.53, and the average mean inactivation dose (MID) was 1.92 (SD +/- 0.35) range from 1.36 Gy to 2.49 Gy. These values were not different from that of breast cell lines examined concurrently and using the same experimental methods (mean SF2 0.38, SD +/- 0.09; MID 1.9 Gy, SD +/- 0.37). However, radiobiological parameters of nine karyotyped human malignant glioma cell lines determined earlier in this laboratory were significantly higher (mean SF2 0.50 +/- 0.14; mean MID 2.61 +/- 0.60). In conclusion, the data presented here do not support the view that cells of sarcomas show unusual radiation resistance. To the extent that the in vitro determined cellular radiation sensitivity reflects the tumor response in vivo, the success rate for radiation applied against sarcoma and breast carcinoma of comparable size could be similar. (C) 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.