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The Vascularity of Normal and Neoplastic Grafts in Vivo^*

(From the Department of Anatomy, School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia 4, Pa.)

The V2 carcinoma of Kidd and Rous survived readily when implanted subcutaneously into rabbits' ears. The tumors ulcerated, and after about 6 months underwent regression with complete disappearance and epithelialization of the ulcerated surfaces. These tumors were all secondarily infected. When implanted into muscles, the tumors killed the animals in from 6 to 10 weeks.

When implanted into transparent chambers installed in rabbits' ears, the tumor grafts survived and completely obliterated all vessels in the chambers in about 30 days. Vascular response to the tumor in grafts bore no relationship to that of any of the 12 types of normal tissue used for comparison except for epidermis, the tissue from which the tumor was derived. It behaved like normal epidermis, responding to injury to the extent that it produced dilatation of the host vessels and was not invaded by capillaries.

The V2 carcinoma had no ability to stimulate the growth of vessels but depended for its nutrition, as far as vessels were concerned, on the vasculature already present in the region being invaded.

The multiplying tumor cells in chambers appeared to destroy the vessels on which they had been placed, and, hence, their only vascular supply, chiefly by external pressure upon the vessels. The result was that the tumors had necrotic centers. The only part of the tumor that survived was a narrow rim at the periphery where there were vessels of the host region not yet completely affected by growth pressures or other factors in the tumor.

The ability to elicit continued growth of vascular endothelium is not a characteristic of all neoplasia, since the V2 carcinoma, under the conditions given, does not have that property at all.

^* This work was supported by a grant from The American Cancer Society upon recommendation of the Committee on Growth of the National Research Council.

Received 10/20/50.

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