[Elevated agglutinability of erythrocytes in cancer patients]

Mediated agglutination of erythrocytes was studied in the presence of concanavalin A (Con A). Agglutinability of erythrocytes from cancer patients was found to be higher than that of normal cells as a result of chemical factors present in the blood plasma which transform the cell surface, the number of Con A receptors remaining unchanged. It is concluded that increased agglutinability of erythrocytes from cancer patients is mainly due to a decrease in the negative charge of cells and the appearance of echinocytic forms.