Some opinions on causal relationship between chorioepithelioma and endocrine milieu.

Abstract

During the course of investigation of the chorioepithelioma with pathological growth of chorionic villi, it became desirable to clarify the participation of abnormal endocrine environments within the host organism. The experiments were designed for this purpose. At first, pregnant women's sera were found to contain an inhibiting factor for the responsiveness of mice uteri and ovaries to HCG upon combined administration. This effect was found strongest when the sera obtained in early gestation were employed. Moreover, it was found by Warburg's manometric method that addition of the sera of the women in late pregnancy or of the new born exerted a considerable stimulating effect on tissue respiration of human chorionic viii. On the basis of these data, it seemed reasonable to presume that estrogen in these sera might have a stimulating effect on the placental function. As part of the studies on the function of the reticuloendothelial system, the patients with chorioepithelioma examined by means of the Adler-Reiman's method for congo red indices gave low values. In the thymectomized rats probably with low activities of the reticuloendothelial system growth of the implanted chorionic villi was promoted. In the Wistar strain pregnant rats, oxygen uptake of the placentas markedly increased. When estradiol or estriol was administered into oophorectomized rabbits, estradiol but not estriol tended to stimulate activities of the reticuloendotherial system, suggesting the importance of determination of estrogen levels in patients with trophoblastic neoplasia. Urinary estrogen excretion, especially the values measured by the flourometric determination in these patients were significantly lower than in normal pregnant women. In view of these data, it seems most reasonable to conclude that anti-HCG factor, activities of the reticuloendothelial system and steroid hormones might play etiological roles in chorioepithelioma.