Abstract
Production of Cancer by Ultra–violet Irradiation
THIS topic was discussed by H. P. Rusch and B. E. Kline at the Autumn Meeting of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences held during October 13–5. The idea that sunlight is an important causal agent in cancer of the skin is not new. The high incidence of skin cancer in sailors has long been known, and nearly fifty years ago ‘seaman's skin’ was described as a precancerous condition attributable to continued exposure to light. However, only in the last decade has experimental support been formed for the theory of direct causation of cancer by sunlight. The authors have determined the wave-lengths of the spectrum responsible for cancer production and measured the amount of energy required for the process. White mice were used in these studies. The wave–lengths o responsible were found to lie between 2,900 A. and 3,341 A. The minimum time for the development of tumours was about two and a half months, and it was not necessary to irradiate the animals throughout the precancerous period. Once initiated, carcinogenesis proceeded without further exposure, and sometimes several months elapsed between the end of irradiation and the appearance of tumours. Very little radiant energy was needed to initiate those changes which culminate in tumour formation. The tumours produced were true malignant cancers of the same type found in humans.
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RESEARCH ITEMS. Nature 148, 785–786 (1941). https://doi.org/10.1038/148785a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/148785a0