Tobacco Documents Online

Tuesday, December 21, 1954, Dr. John H. Heller came in - is Executive Director, Now England Institute for Medical Research, Ridgefield, Conn, Described Institute • which grew out of Dept. Physical Medicine at Yale - now separate - supported by institutional grants from founda- tions - general plan is to use physical and chemical techniques in medical research. 4 Headquarters are at Ridgfield. V (ceils regenerate rapidly when young) - sex hormones affect all ac- tivity. A new society has been formed for study of this system. Chief Personal Hobby - the reticulo-endothelial system - poorly de- fined by cytologists - now redefined by Heller in terms of function - the cells which absorb colloidal particles of negative charge - acts as phagocytes which engulf bacteria, viruses, etc. as well as chemically inert matter Ig it has colloidal dimensions and negative charge - physical techniques will show where such colloids go - using tagged substances (intravenously), allowing time for distribution, then sac- rificing animals making sections and letting these photograph them- selves on photographic plates - thorium oxide is a good one for this- cells can be put out of action by such blocking - same cells produce a lot of enzymes - blocking them reduces enzyme effects and permits m.qr~ measurement of changes - cortisone reduces enzyme activity of cells "~s- radiation does also - a few drugs stimulate it - more can probably be found now that there is a technique for measurement -~ Cancer Theory - speculative but provocative - radiation such as cosmic rays can change genes in cells - there are perhaps 16,000,000 possible changes - many lethal - few types persist - still capable of growth, etc. but they are now "foreign" cells ioxnunologically - the reticulo-endothelial cells engulf most of these thus acting as a defense mechanism against cancer - but if blocked by colloids, or depressed in activity by drugs or hormones, some of the "foreign" cells may escape and become cancers -"take•' of cancer grafts is assisted by radiation, cortisone or blocking of tksssxsRttm reticulo-endothelial cells - the very factors that depress activity of these cells - probably the drugs that stimulate the cells will do the reverse (I mentioned Wachtel(s pituitary extract here. It might show such action on the R.A, cells.) Drugs which actively stimulated this system might cure cancer, or at least make radiation much more active. 'Z ..t jgkjM7 - Holler assumes that lung cells of the reticulo-endothelial type do the usual job - enqulf particles of colloidal site AW negative charge - a check of experience with industrial smokes etc. suggests that positively charged particles are discharged from the lung by mucous etc, but negative ones absorbed - if they are absorbed and AW irritating, they might be carcinogenic - Holler thinks the negative particles in smoke might be filtered out.

2 0 He does not particularly want a project, but could accomodate a study to test out some part of his hypothesis • particularly where it touches upon tobacco smoke • he thinks he could set up experimental conditions that would probably produce lung cancers in animals at a low but rather constant rate • by using suitably regulated smokea - and then superimpose tobacco smoke in such a way as to test the effect on tumor incidence • then tests of smoke filtration according to electric charge on the particles could be made for comparison • thus some basic information and some directly pertinent to tobacco could be gained at one time. His full ideas are not written out anywhere, but he would be willing to meet the SAB at lunch and outline them. Though this is rather unorthodox, I think it might be 3ustified. The more orthodox al• ternative would be to prepare an application in the usual fashion and then meet with the appropriate sub•coaunittee.