Abstract
Conclusions
In 118 out of 122 cases where there were no indications of tumors, injection of the serum was followed by complete arrest of development of the chick embryo, the fertile egg substance undergoing degeneration, usually after the eleventh day of incubation. Confirmation, by waiting until the end of the hatching period, is advisable. The 4 negative results occurred in 2 male cases; one with mitral insufficiency plus migrating phlebitis, and the other with erythema multi forme and trigeminus neuralgia. The other 2 cases were women, one in menopause with atrophic arthritis, and tuberculous ulcers of both corneae; the other with a chronic paren-chymatous nephritis.
In marked contrast with these results, when serum from a case of malignant tumor or from a pregnant woman was used, the development of the embryo proceeded normally until a full term chick was hatched. In some cases, the growth was even accelerated, shortening the incubation period, the chicks being noticeably larger and more precocious. Positive results were obtained in 216 cases out of 220. In this group the sera which gave a negative result were 2 with squamous carcinoma of the larynx, one with spindle cell sarcoma of the scapula, and one with melanoma of the face.
The causes of the isolated failures cannot be predicated at the present time. It is to be noted that on the 11th or 12th day, chemical examination of the egg contents for carbohydrates shows marked quantitative differences between eggs injected with cancer serum and those injected with non-cancerous serum. Whatever the explanation, the fact has been established that non-cancerous sera inhibit the development of the chick, while cancerous sera sustain or even accelerate it.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.