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Viral Oncolysis Studies with a Metastatic Human Tumor in Chicks
Chester M. Southam, in his article “Viral Oncolysis Studies with a Metastatic Human Tumor in Chicks,” entails the methodologies and the results obtained from the various experiments related to human tumors in chicks. Specifically, he refers to an experiment that cancer researchers Dagg and Karnofsky conducted, in which they found that the human epidermoid carcinoma (H. Ep. #3) growing on chickens’ eggs’ chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) would metastasize in the embryo. In other words, the chicks would be born with metastatic human cancer. The cancer researchers believe that this information has the potential to significantly advance the study of viral oncolysis.

Segments of H. Ep. #3 are placed on the eggs and after hatching, the egg shells were examined to see if CAM tutors grew. If the tumors were not found, then the chicks were discarded. On the other hand, if the tumors existed, then they were carefully measured. Because of the differences in the sizes of tumors, the researchers initially believed that there was a correlation between tumor size and the development of metastasis. However, the correlation was proved insignificant. In fact, one result demonstrated that there was not even a correlation between tumor size and the chicks’ lifespan. That said, sixty percent of the chicks that had CAM tumors died before day 35 of the experiment.

Several viruses were tested to determine their effects on the chickens’ survival rate. It turns out that H. Ep. #3 slightly increased the survival rate of the chickens, suggesting that it may be an effective virus to use. However, the article reiterates that due to the many factors during an experiment, few conclusions can be accurately drawn.

Several viruses that bear the potential to infect chickens were also carefully examined. Viruses such as Mengo, Bunyamwera, and Semliki Forest showed no antitumor effect. Nonetheless, Egypt 101, through tissue culture of the H. Ep. #3 cell, caused an apparent increase in survival rate. This informs the researchers that the virus exists in higher concentrations in tumors than it does in regular tissue.