Transplantation of human tumors in nude mice.

Ninety-one human tumors, including various common carcinomas, low-grade malignant tumors, and benign tumors, were transplanted into athymic nude mice. Tumor take was confirmed histologically for 22 neoplasms at the initial transplantation, and 14 serially transplantable tumors were established, including some hitherto unestablished or unreported, such as lung and hepatic cell carcinomas. Among the 91 tumors were 21, 14, and 13 carcinomas of the lung, stomach, and breast, respectively. Transplantability was highest in lung carcinomas (10/21), followed by gastric carcinomas (2/14) and breast carcinomas (1/13). Morphology of original tumors was retained well in most transplanted tumors, but desmoplastic or scirrhous tumors, such as gastric and breast carcinomas, tended to become medullary with a decrease in amount of tumor stroma. The ability to produce mucin in gastric carcinomas or melanin in malignant melanoma was maintained in serially transplantable tumors. In addition, ectopic production of adrenocorticotropin and beta melanocyte-stimulating hormone continued in a transplanted small cell carcinoma of the lung. Preliminary results were obtained on hormone dependency of the transplantable breast carcinoma and on alpha1-fetoprotein in the transplantable hepatic cell carcinoma.