Tumori Journal

In mouse plasmacytoma experimentally induced with mineral oil, the presence of two plasma cells populations has been observed with the electron microscope. The most evident difference between them is represented by a different electron density, as to permit to classify them into « dark » and « light » cells. The higher electron density is ascribed to a higher cytoplasmatic concentration of ribosomial granules and mainly to a particular abundance of proteic material in the hyaloplasmic matrix. The possibility is discussed either that both the plasma cells populations really represent two different cellular kinds or, on the contrary, that they belong to the same cellular stem in a different functional behaviour or in a different maturation phase.

Two groups of (SWR×C57BL)F₁ mice were injected subcutaneously with two quantitatively different cell suspensions from a uretan-induced thymic lymphoma of the same hybrid combination. Each of these groups was divided before the neoplastic isograft into the following sub-groups: controls, cyclophosphamide injected, X-irradiated and BCG injected mice. Percentage of takes, tumor diameters and mortality provided the parameters for the evaluation of the tumor growth. With the higher inoculum of neoplastic cells (5×10⁵) only cyclophosphamide was effective in enhancing the take percentage 10 days after the isograft. With the smaller inoculum (5 × 10³) all treatments were effective on tumor growth although the inhibitory action of BCG was not as strong as the enhancing action of the immune depressive treatments. The results are interpreted as evidence of a specific antigenicity of urethan-induced lymphoma.

Adriamycin is a new antitumor antibiotic of the anthracycline group. Its chemical structure is very close to that of daunorubicin. Pharmacological studies demonstrated that adriamycin has a higher therapeutic index (1.21) than daunorubicin (0.67). Adriamycin was given intravenously to 53 patients with different types of leukemia and cancer (13 children and 40 adults). Three doses were used: 0.4 mg/kg (pretreated patients), 0.65 mg/kg (untreated adults), 0.8 mg/kg (children). Three different schedules were also employed regardless of the single dose/kg (table 1): A) Loading-dose schedule: treatment for 4 consecutive days followed by a 3 day interval: the drug was then restarted 1–2 times a week; B) Alternate day-dose schedule: treatment every other day for 4–6 doses followed by a 3 day interval; the drug was then restarted 1–2 times a week; C) Intermittent-dose schedule: two treatments for 3 consecutive days separated by two intervals of 4 days; the drug was then restarted 1–2 times a week. The chief evidence of toxicity was a triad of symptoms: stomatitis, bone marrow depression and alopecia (table 2). The oral ulcerations where the first sign of toxicity in more than 50 % of cases. The first sign of toxicity usually precedes the other side effects by 1–3 days. Fever, gastroenteritis and phlebitis at the site of injection were toxic signs of minor importance. However, to avoid phlebitis the drug should be injected through a tube of a free-running intravenous infusion. Adriamycin seems from the present series to be devoid of significant cardiac toxicity. As expected, children tolerated higher doses than adults and all pretreated patients became rapidly intoxicated with small doses. The less toxic schedule appears to be the intermittent one (C). Prompt and consistent responses were observed in many cases (table 4), but they were usually short lived. The drug appears therefore to be a potent growth-inhibiting compound more useful for inducing the first remission than for mantaining it. Acute lymphoblastic and chronic myelogenous leukemias as well as malignant lymphomas, neuroblastomas and soft tissue sarcomas were the diseases most sensitive to adriamycin.

Total extract of « Amanita phalloides » Fr., when used in the experimental conditions described in this study, determines a constant inhibitory activity on transplants of Yoshida tumor in the rat. An early and clear lytic effect on tumor cells has also been demonstrated in vitro. The antitumoral action takes effect in the phase of implantation. It is not related to the two well known toxins, alpha-amanitine and phalloidine, which do not possess the activity when used separately. The substance, in the extract that exerts the inhibiting activity on ascites tumor of Yoshida has yet to be identified. In rats in which tumor grafts with total extract of Amanita phalloides did not result in growth a further implantation of the same tumor without extract was unsuccessful. This behaviour is possibly explained by a phenomenon of active immunization. Some particular problems arise from these results. It might be of interest to extend the research to other experimental tumors.

275 cases of head and neck tumors were observed among patients from 0 to 17 years of age at the National Cancer Institute of Milan during the forty year period 1928–1968. Because of possible preselection of the case material, cutaneous angiomas, retinoblastomas, adamantinomas and central nervous system (CNS) tumors were excluded from this series. All cases were evaluated from the viewpoint of histogenesis, site, age and sex. From the analysis of the different cases we can point out that: 1) if CNS tumors and retinoblastoma are excluded, no type of head and neck neoplasm is absolutely characteristic of childhood. 2) Angioma is the most common benign growth, followed by thyroid adenoma, nevus and parotid gland mixed tumor; among malignant tumors, the most frequent are solid and lymphoreticular sarcomas followed with a much lower incidence by carcinoma of nasopharynx. 3) The epithelial investment very rarely gives origin to malignant tumors, which are predominantly found in the nasopharynx. 4) A part from some exceptions, the general incidence of all benign and malignant tumors increases proportionally with age. 5) Benign tumors are more common among females while malignant tumors among males. 6) Rhabdomyosarcoma of the head and neck area is located almost solely in the soft palate.