El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-07-13
Experiments with Cancer,


The number of Investigations which
have not yet been applied, but which
give much promise of successful APP
-plication is both large and important
Perhaps the most interesting of these
contributions relates to cancer. For
years and years various theories OF the
origin of this dreadful disease have
been put forth, but for a long time the
theory that ii is a germ disease was
denied. 1t was claimed by some that
II might be due TO the displacement o.
tissue in the embryo and the cGEse-
Quent pOStpOnement OF Its SrOWti un-
til adult life was reached others as
serted that there were no facts at hand
TO justify its being regarded as 2
parasite disease. But the experiments
in the institute tend to the conclusion
that il is caused by a gerH that is u
tramicroscopie. Should tnis germ be
discovered and a curatsve serum de-
-vised, tens Of THOUSANDS of cases or
terrible suffering migat be terminated.
parasitic disease. But the experiments
in the institute tend to the conclusion
that it is caused ~ a germ that Is u
tramierOseopic- Should this germ be
discovered and a curative serum de-
vlsed, tens of Thousands of cases of ter
rible suffering might be terminated
The preservation living animal
tissue outside of the body is another
wonderful work performed in the init
tute LABORATORIES and IL IS fundamen-
tai discovery out of which dozens OF
other almost certainly Will come. 1t
makes POSSIBLE a study OF the laws of
tissue growth that would otherwise
be our of the question, IT may lead 10
new IDEAS in organ transportation, and
IN the rapid healing Of surgical wounds.
Skin may be taken from a fresh ca
daTer, kept for several weeks, and then
be used in the treatment of ulcers. 1t
mas been shown that tissue taken from
the human body has great accelers-
ton of growth after two months in
the test tube, and that the secret Of
indefinite preservation seems 70 be
-eH-s Of A n7tnne 80
products in addition TO supplying nu-
triton. Here again the possibilities
are so great that their mere statement
would cause the utmost incTedulity. II
a little piece of tissue can be pre-
served, why not a leg or an arm2
Is not Selfish Institution.
The Rockefeller institute is not
selfish organization wishing to mOnOpo-
lie all credit for medical progress in
this country. Not only does it cooperate
with all the other big research insti-
tutiens Of the country but just as rap
idly as It is able to work out one sin
gle theory IT publishes the result in
its official organ, the Journal of Elk
peFimental Medicine, and gives the en-
tire research world full opportunity TO
utilize every particle Of its work IN
rearing superstructUres Of their own.
1t viii not wait, for instance, until 1t
has found the germ of cancer before
announcing its conclusion that the s
ease is parasitic. Rather it immCdi-
ately announces its conclusions and the
grounds upon which they are predicat-
ed, and invites the scientific world to
join it in the stillhunt for the dreaded
bacillus that has caused so much nu-
man misery and mortal woe.
In addition 10 its Journal of Expert
mental Medicine, the Rockefeller insti-
tute frequently publishes monogIag hs
upon vital subjects with which it is
dealing. For instance, one monograph
contained a study Of tumors IN ami
mails. One paper of this monograph
was devoted TO the study of a trans
plantable rat tumOr, another to the
study of the biology of a mixed tumor
Of rat; another to experiments on the
inflenee of Tadium bromide on a rat
tumOr; another upon spontaneous tu-
mors of a mouse; and the final one on
the transplantatiOn Of a human tumor
In g rhesus monkey.