CANCER RESEARCH

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 156, 30 December 1925, Page 6

CANCER RESEARCH

WORK OF A NEW ZEALANDER

RECENT EXPERIMENTS.

(From Ouf Own CorrespomUnt.)

LONDON, 21st November. A New Zealander who is doing good work in cancer research in London is Dr. A. M. Begg. Reference was made to him at a meeting of the General Committee of the Imperial Cancer Research Fund at which the Duke of Bedford (president) was in the chair. Sir Humphrey Kolleston, chairman of the Executive Committee** mentioned that the Wotk under the Atholßtan Grant for research Was being carried on with great diligence by Dr. Begg, whose investigations on the Rous fowl sarcoma, and the infective lytnphqsarcotaa bf the dog had inevitably taken Oh a new orientation since the publication ,of the work of Dr. W. E. Gyp. of the Medical Research Council* Dr. Russell took a keen interest in this work, and since his lamented death Dr. Begs had had the advantage of close association with Dr. Gye. This informal collaboration had been a source of great satisfaction to the Executive Committee. Dr. Begg's investigations were iirogresaing g&tißfactorily, and, it Was hoped, would soon be ready for publication. The important work of Di\ W. E. Gye and Mr. Bat'nard, in addition to the tnahy new lines of inquiry it opened lip, called for" the most careful repetition with as many of the different kinds of turnout's as possible. This was how occupying mtlch of the time and energy of the scientific staff. $ir Humphrey Rolleslon, in moving the adoption of the committee's report, commented on the various published papers which had been issued from the laboratory. These \vere that of Dt\ W. Crai'tner on the influence of in nervation on [ the' experimental production of skin cancer by tar and a paper by Di\ A*. M. Findlay on the production of cancXjv by a single application of tar. Dr. Cramer deprived'a skin area in a number of mice of the nerve supply, and then painted it twice weekly until cancer Bilperveiled. This only occurred after a longer course of tarring than was necessary fu normal animals, alid therefore, absence bf nerve supply certainly did not predispose to the genesis of cancer as had been suggested. The nfirves grow in again into the denervated area, so that the experiment did not give an absolute answer to the question whether, if renewal of the nerve supply could be prevented, cancer would not be produced at all. . ■-*. TAR BURNS. Dr. Findlay's experiments were devised to determine H. it was possible to reproduce in animals the remarkable sequence reported in the human subject from time to time, in which ah accidental tar burri had been followed after a short interval by the appearance of typical progressive carcinoma at the point of injury. For this purpose a large number of mice received a single applica'icin of hot tir on a small area of the back. A slight swell-j ing and reddening of the skin followed, but soon subsided. It was not till the ! lapse of a year" that any further cllange was observed, and then three mice showed typical cancer of the skin in the site of the application. • This experimental result was important In that it showed that general intoxication with tar, which had i been invoked by many workers as ah ifp- I portant factor in the Causation of tar ] cancer, was, to say the least, not esseii- j tial. Dr; Findlay wfts hlso continuing his research into the action of mtingan- j ese salts, especially as regards the more delayed effects, but had not published any further report in tile year under review. 85, Fleet Street. , *