Differential Behaviour of the Liver Towards Natural and Artificial Estrogens. ∗

Summary

Experiments with intrasplenic and intrahepatic pellets of diethylstilbestrol and of hexestrol showed that these artificial estrogens are more resistant against hepatic inactivation than the natural ones. Abdominal fibroids could not be induced with intrasplenic pellets of. natural estrogens, free or esterified; they were induced with intrasplenic pellets of diethylstilbestrol and of hexestrol though the incidence of tumors of a certain size was greatly diminished when compared with subcutaneously implanted pellets. Other toxic actions characteristic of prolonged treatment with estrogens also were present with intrasplenic pellets of artificial estrogens, whereas they were mostly absent or only transient with intrasplenic pellets of natural estrogens.