Evening star., 1953-10-03
Congressional Group
| Studies Role Of Atom
In Cancer Research
Bv the Assoeiaied Press

A congressional committee
today looked into a humane
aspect of atomic energy-what
it has to offer in the war against
cancer.
They heard earlier a predic-
ton that npn-atomic wonder
drugs would be developed against
the scourge in 10 years or more.
The House Commerce Com
mittee, currently holding hear
ings to appraise the status of
research against cancer, heart
disease, polio and other major
ills, called on scientists of the
Atomic Energy Commission for
discussion of its program of can
GER research a nd treatment.
Something Like PeniciIlin.
Yesterday, DR.. Cornelius P.
Rhoads of New York told the
committee that. because of the
promise shown by a number of
chemicals, including some related
to chemical warfare gas, "in-
evitably we cam look forward to
something like penicillin for
cancer"
"I am convinced" declared
DR.. Rhoads. that in the next
decade or maybe more, we will
have chen hicals as effective
against cancer as the sulfa drugs
are today against bacterial in
fections."
He said he based this convic-
ton on the fact that three diff
ferent classes of chemical weap-
ons have already been developed
that can relieve pain and pro-
long life in certain types of can
Ger, although they do not cure
them.
10000 Chemicals Studied.
The doctor said more than
10000 pure" chemicals have
been under investigation, along
with 1000 "crude extracts" in
cluding everything from grape
and apple parings to mush-
rooms"
The classes of chemicals which
have shown the most promise SO
far, he said, are: Cd the nitro
gen mustards which are derived
from mustard gas; CD chemi-
Gals called "anti-folics" which
are substances which act exactly
the opposite of a vitamin called
folio acid; and 90 chemicals
called "anti-purines."
Also at the hearings:
DR.. Charles Cameron of New
York, scientific director of the
American Cancer Society, de-
clared there has been IAN alarm
ing increase" IN cancer of the
lung and that proposed investi-
cations of the possible cause or
causes include such things as
studies of materials in the at
moSphere over "Smog- -smitten
cities like Los Angeles
Keeping Tabs on 10000.
DR.. Cameron also said the can
Ger society is keeping tabs on
100000 men, including smokers
and non-smokers, in an effort
to learn whether there is evi-
dence among them that lung
cancer is linked with smoking.
DR.. Rhoads said he and a
group of colleagues produced
cancers in mice and rabbits with
tars derived from tobacco smoke,
and that tests were being con-
Quoted on| human skin to de-
termine if there was any malig-
nant effect.
1t such should prove to be
the case, he said, efforts might
be made to remove the tar as
constituent of tobacco, "be-
cause don't think we can stop
the people from smoking"
DR.. Rhoads added that, even
If smoking proved to be a factor
in lung cancer, he was sure it
was mot the only factor"
Tells of Taft Treatments.
DR.. Rhoads, who treated the
late Senator Robert A. Taft of
Ohio, said that something like
a penicillin for cancer" would
be especially vital in such cases.
The weight of evidence from
a post-mortem examination, DR..
Rhoads said, was that the can
Ger which killed Senator Taft
aroce in the pancreas, an organ
which Secretes digestive juices.
The doctor said that when
Senator Taft's case was dag
nosed as cancer in June at
Cincinnati hospital (the Senator
had first become i'll in late ApriD,
he already had developed cam
cerous Jumps" which were
highly malignant, rapidly grow
ing and widely scattered through
the body"