Abstract
It is reasonably assumed that a cancer-bearing host has a certain degree of defense activity against cancer, which is partly represented by stromal reactions and sinus histiocytosis of the regional lymph nodes. On the other hand, it is generally accepted that general defense activity such as allograft rejection is decreased in cases of far advanced cancer.
On the assumption that stromal reactions are manifested in the host as an immunologic defensive response to cancer, if antigenicity of each cancer to the host were the same, the degree of allograft rejection would be closely correlated with that of stromal reactions.
Observations were made of 50 cases consisting of 40 gastric cancers and 10 benign gastric diseases operated on during a period from 1965 to 1966. Fourteen days after transplantation of skin allograft the degree of rejection was histologically evaluated.
In general, advanced cases showed weak rejection reactions against skin allografts. It was revealed that the cases with weak rejection reactions showed weak stromal reactions surrounding cancer foci, while the cases with strong rejection reactions showed either strong or weak stromal reactions. Accordingly it was concluded that the degree of allograft rejection reactions did not always correspond to the degree of stromal reactions. Discussions were made on such disagreement.
