Evening star., 1939-02-03
Cancer Facts 10 Avoid
Wrong Impressions
Are Announced
Answers to 19 Major
Issues Submitted
By Science Writers
BY THOMAS r. HENRY,
Star Staff Correspondent.

of Cancer by the National ASsocla-
ton of Science Writers, were made
public here today.
Because of the mass OF cancer re-
search now being carried on IN
many fields, attended by enthusiast
tic and sometimes conflicting re-
ports of results, both the general
public and physicians are often led
astray. This procedure for clearing
the atmosphere so far as publicity
on cancer research is concerned has
become an annual practice OF the
American Society.
Definite Gains Made.
Gains made during the past year,
according to the committees evalu-
alton of them, are slight but definite.
The point chiefly stressed remains
early diagnosis. Nothing OF sig
nificance, the committee said has
developed in the earlier detection
of superficial, skin cancers except
the increasingly better education OF
both public and doctors. A new
method of making serial X-ray pho
tographs has markedly improved
the possibilities for many internal
cancers, such as bone and lung.
No reliable blood test for cancer
exists, the committee stressed, but
tests of blood and urine for certain
hormones help in the early diagnosis
of many tumors of the sex organs.
The committee was definite on one
point upon which there has been
much conflicting evidence.
There is" its statement says, "a
pre-cancerous pro-stage for most,
but not all. cancers. Some spring
sharply into existence. In many
Instances this stage is prolonged,
as in skim breast, and probably
stomach and intestines. Most hope
for earlier diagnosis and more
effective treatment centers about
breast, stomach, rectal, bone and
uterine cancer.
GastrOscopy Is of Value.
"Gastroscopy is of definite but not
extreme value in stomach cancer.
Various types of chronic changes in
gastric mucosa precede cancer, but
they are very difficult to explain
and apparently impossible to pre-
vent or cure. Stomach cancer has
been said to be a traumatic cancer,
due to innumerable abuses of the
organ. To improve results we ad-
wise formation of stomach cancer
clinics where large numbers of cases,
real and suspected, early and late,
can be gathered and highly trained
specialists made available. A large
endowment would be necessary.
The cost of photographs in many
suspected cases stands in the way
Of using this method In large
clientele unable to pay for services.
The only helpful thing to be told
the public about stomach cancer is
to avoid stomach abuse. Most ply
sicians are awake to the situation,
but the problem is largely insolvable
with the present state of human
nature. Few will bother about per-
sistent indigestion until it becomes
unbearable"
Popular reports of cancer research
are often confusing, it was stressed,
because the experiments are carried
on with rats and mice and it is as
sumed that encouraging results
might be transferred to human be-
ings. This, it was explained, does
not necessarily or usually follow. A
rat experiment leads to better un-
derstanding of the cancer problem
which is necessary before much can
hn 11;,
information is seldom directly ap-
plicable.
A few years ago great publicity
was given to reputed cure for can
Ger presented to the American Col
lege of Surgeons by Doctors Walter
B. Cofey and David Humber of San
Francisco. in which extracts from
sheep adrenal glands were used.
No other proposed cure has been
given so thorough trial, the COM
mittee said, and in thousands of
cases no good results have been OBJ
tanned.
Latest Development.
The latest development in cancer
therapy is the use of the so-called
"neutron rays" obtained by bom-
harding lithium with nuclei of
heavy hydrogen atoms. These are
at least as powerful as X-rays, the
committee said but the outcome of
the work is purely speculative at
present.
There is general impression that
the more powerful the X-radiation
directed at cancerous growth the
more effective but, it was pointed
out in the committees answers, this
does not necessarily follow.
The theory of X-ray, neutron or
radium treatment of cancer, it was
explained rests on the fact that cells
are most easily killed when they
are In the process of dividing-the
basic phenomenon of growth of an
organ. Cancer cells divide much
faster than normal body cells. Con-
sequently more of them are killed
than are normal cells. This is the
reason why such treatments are
given at repeated intervals, rather
than in heavy doses at once. In
this way it is possible to catch more
cells in the process of dividing.
Immunity to Leukemia.
At the annual meeting of the di-
rectors of the Carnegie Institution
here in September notable report
was made by DR.. E. c. MacDowell
of producing immunity to leukemia,
a cancerous condition of the blood,
by injections of liver tissue from
other mice. DR.. MacDowell actually
cured leukemia well established in
his animals by transfer from other
animals.
This, the committee admitted,
was a very notable advance but
stressed that the method had
proved successful only in cases
where the leukemia had been trans
ferred from another animal. 1t has