Benzoyl peroxide acts as a promoter of radiation induced malignant transformation in vitro.

The experiments reported here demonstrate that benzoyl peroxide (BP) can promote radiation induced transformation in vitro. BP is shown to be capable of generating free radicals, determined by the kinetics of hydroxylation as measured by fluorescence of coumarin-3-carboxylic acid. Although the mechanisms involved in the BP enhancement of radiation transformation are unknown, we hypothesize that lipid peroxidation produced by benzoyl radicals in the vicinity of membrane associated unsaturated lipids could contribute to the promotion of transformation in vitro.