Journal of Dental Research, Vol 65, 927-931, Copyright © 1986 by International & American Associations for Dental Research Online Journals
Hamster cheek pouch carcinoma: effect of incision and cortisone on growth, invasion, and metastasis
K. Tsiklakis, N. K. Wood, P. D. Toto and D. B. Doemling
After cheek pouch carcinomas were induced in hamsters by the application of
dimethylbenzanthracene (DMBA) to the right pouch for 13 weeks, the animals
were divided into four groups and observed for seven more weeks. The
control group received no further treatment, two experimental groups had
incisional biopsies performed on tumors in their pouches, one of these also
received injections of cortisone throughout the 20-week experimental
period, and a fourth group received cortisone only. The wet weights of the
cancerous cheek pouches were determined, and the submandibular and parotid
salivary glands with associated cervical lymph nodes, the lungs, and the
liver were examined with light microscopy. The cancerous pouches of the
animals that received cortisone weighed significantly less than those of
animals that received no cortisone but had incisional biopsies of the
tumors. There was no significant difference in the degree of
histodifferentiation of the tumors among the four groups. The animals in
the two groups that received cortisone had significantly more tumors that
were invasive than did the animals that did not receive cortisone. Cervical
lymph node metastasis occurred in 21% to 38% of the animals but was not
significantly different in the four groups. Distant metastases to the lungs
or the liver were not found. Incisional biopsy of the tumors stimulated
local growth of the cheek pouch tumors, and systemic cortisone
administration produced more invasive cheek pouch tumors.
