[An animal model for tumors of the large intestine]

Dimethylhydrazine (DMH) and its derivatives induced in many animal species tumors of the large intestine with a great specificity and reproductibility. Oour personal observations using rats BD IX injected weekly with DMH are summarized in this presentation. The induced tumors appear as invaded tumors already at the microscopic stade. Their growth is best described by a Gompertz function. The number of induced tumors increases with time as a non linear function. This model is very useful for the study of the biology of human tumors with a low development.