Drugs, food additives and natural products as promoters in rat urinary bladder carcinogenesis.

The promoting effects of various chemicals on urinary bladder carcinogenesis in rats initiated with N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl)nitrosamine (BBN) were studied. Male Fischer 344 rats were given BBN at 0.01% or 0.05% in their drinking-water for four weeks. One of the following chemicals was then administered in the diet for 32 or 34 weeks: acetazolamide, allopurinol, phenobarbital, phenacetin, ortho-phenylphenol, sodium ortho-phenylphenate, diphenyl, sodium L-ascorbate, butylated hydroxyanisole, butylated hydroxytoluene, sodium saccharin, aspartame, sodium cyclamate, stevioside, DL-tryptophan, quercetin, caffeine, nicotine and hippuric acid. Phenacetin, sodium ortho-phenylphenate, sodium L-ascorbate and butylated hydroxyanisole were significant promoters of urinary bladder neoplasia in rats initiated with BBN. Sodium saccharin, diphenyl, butylated hydroxytoluene, allopurinol, and DL-tryptophan caused moderate or slight promotion of neoplastic changes in the experimental animals. No change in tumour yield was observed after administration of the other chemicals.