Heterotransplants of human tumors in nude mice

A short review of 10 years experience with the use of thymus-aplastic nude mice in onocology is given. All major human tumor types, e.g. lung, breast, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, malignant melanomas are now established and serially grown in nude mice. Rare human tumors with endocrine activity have also been transplanted successfully to nude mice. Transplanted tumors grow locally at the site of inoculation and metastatic spread to lymph nodes and organs is a rare event. The growth rate of the individual tumors remain constant even after several years of serial transfer. Light and electron microscopy show a close similarity of mouse grown tumors to the human donor material. As judged from isozyme studies, chromosome analyses and immunological investigations human characteristics are preserved in nude mouse grown tumors. Chemotherapy of different types of transplanted human tumors has shown that responses obtained with different tumor/drug combinations in nude mice are comparable with the results obtained by the same tumor/drug combinations in clinical practice. This model is now being employed as a secondary screening method for evaluation selected anticancer agents that are to be used in clinical trials.