• 1 January 1975
    • journal article
    • review article
    • Vol. 22  (6) , 461-465
Abstract
The historical development, and more recent advances in the use of xenografts of human tumors as potential models for the study of human cancer are described and discussed. The practicality of the various systems available are critically reviewed, as well as their potential application in the field of experimental chemotherapy. Emphasis is given to the fact that over 2 decades of research effort has hardly produced any results of clinical relevance, often because workers were too carried away with their technical achievements to appreciate the rules of experimental chemotherapy. The role of human tumor xenografts in the study of human cancer is appreciated, but the development of newer syngeneic, differentiated animal models may lessen their importance in the field of experimental chemotherapy.