Ovarian Hormone and Traumatic Stimulation of Monkey's Cervix to a Condition Resembling Early Cancer

Abstract

The ovarian follicular hormone has been shown by Allen1, 2 to be a powerful stimulator of epithelial growth in the female genital tract and breast. Large amounts of this hormone have been reported in the blood of cancer patients, both male and female. Also cancer tissue from men has been found to have a high content of theelin. Lacassagne gave theelin injections to 3 male mice from a strain in which 72% of the females developed spontaneous mammary cancer. The males of this strain normally never developed mammary cancer but the theelin injections produced mammary cancer in 5 to 6 months in each of the 3 males. Removal of the ovaries in mammary cancer strains of mice and rats markedly decreases or entirely prevents the development of spontaneous mammary cancer.6, 7, 8 Hofbauer reported that anterior hypophysis transplants and extracts in guinea pigs produced a precancerous condition in the cervix. His anterior pituitary treatment should. have increased the production of the follicular hormone, although he considers that the pituitary hormone caused a direct stimulation of the cervical epithelium. These facts led us to attempt to produce cancer by injections of genital growth hormones combined with chronic trauma. Nine female Macacus rhesus monkeys were used. All except one were ovariectomized several months to 20 days before the beginning of the experiment. The cervices were traumatized by scissor cuts through a vaginal speculum. This procedure was repeated at 7 to 10 day intervals throughout the experiment. In addition to the cuts a small metal clip was clamped on the cervix in some of the animals. Subcutaneous injections of hormone were made twice daily, morning and evening as a rule.