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New Screening System for Selection of Anticancer Drugs for Treatment of Human Colorectal Cancer¹

Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology II, Vienna University School of Medicine, Vienna, Austria [W. S.], and Departments of Medicine [G. M. C., D. D. V. H.] and Surgery [M. P. M.], The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas 78285

We report an evaluation of a new radiometric technique (BACTEC assay) as a potential screening system for cytotoxic compounds with activity against cancer of the large bowel. Exponentially growing cells of nine different human colorectal cancer cell lines were exposed to a variety of standard anticancer agents with or without documented clinical activity. Each drug was tested in a series of 1-h and continuous exposure studies utilizing three different concentrations. Antineoplastic effects were analyzed as a function of in vivo achievable serum concentrations, namely by a ratio of the concentration required to decrease cell growth to 10% of control to one-tenth of the peak plasma concentration in humans. Our results suggest that COLO 320DM, OM-1, and Ht-29 cells manifest responsiveness to anticancer drugs consistent with that noted in clinical studies with most agents tested. The radiometric technique provides several advantages for a screening system, including reproducibility, a good agreement with the cloning assay, speed, and low costs. The combined use of the BACTEC technique and the three colon cancer cell lines could prove useful as a screen for new anticancer compounds with activity in colorectal cancer.

¹ This study was supported by Grant J0042 from the Fonds zur Foerderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, Vienna, Austria, and by a grant from Johnston Laboratories, Towson, MD.

² To whom requests for reprints should be addressed, at Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology II, Vienna University School of Medicine, A-1090 Garnisongasse 13, Vienna, Austria.

Received 7/16/85. Revised 1/14/86. Accepted 2/19/86.