Animal studies and prediction of human tumors can be aided by graphical sorting of animal data: neoplastic risk from B(a)P, benzene, benzidine, and chromium.

This work is a graphical study of all known dose-response data for neoplasia induced by B(a)P, benzene, benzidine, and chromium administered to test animals. Doses are put in units of lifetime intake given in micromoles of chemical per kilogram body weight, and responses are in percent increased effect per unit dose. Space limitations do not permit experiment-by-experiment critiques; however, computer graphics have been used to compare the relationship of any individual dose-response point estimate to other such point estimates for the chemical of interest. Graphics are also used to study variability resulting from different experimental parameters such as species, route of intake, number of treatments, pathological classification of neoplasia, etc. Graphical sorting, according to various physical and biological classification parameters, permits one to judge, from visual inspection, such questions as whether mice as a species are more sensitive than rats as a species, whether intravenous injection is generally more effective than inhalation, whether a single well-defined dose-response function, which ignores these classification parameters, can be evaluated numerically from the composite data base deriving from all oncogenic studies with a given chemical, etc.