Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 181, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 August 1919 — LACK MICE FOR STUDY OF CANCER [ARTICLE]

LACK MICE FOR STUDY OF CANCER

Dactor Wood of Columbia Reports Shortage Because Armies Needed Them. HELD UP RESEARCH WORK War’s Absorption of Scientists Who Entered Service Also Retarded Investigations in DiseaseDeath Rate Jumps. • New York. —Study of cancer durifig the war was Impeded, not only by taking physicians from research work but because of the shortage of mice, which were used in large quantities with tije allied armies for the detection of'gas and, the diagnoses of certain types of disease, according to the report of Dr. Francis Carter Wood, director of the George Crocker special research fund of Columbia university. Thousands of mice which had been raised for research work were turned over to the government. The mice breathe very rapidly and are far more sensitive to gases than human beings, so that they were kept in exposed sectors and observed closely, because their behavior would Indicate the coming of gas long before it could be detected by human beings. It was also announced that mice had been sent out on board every submarine, for the same purpose. , Mice React to Gas. One of the most common troubles on submarines has been from chlorine, due to wet batteries. The mice react to the gas long before It is dangerous, or even perceptible, toMtie crew, thus enabling them to find the difficulty and repair it before the air becomes so tainted as to be dangerous. In the British army hundreds of canaries were used, as well as mice, for the detection of gas. In addition to supplying thousands of mice to the government, the George Crocker special -research fund raised enough, however, to supply many medical schools and research laboratories throughout the country. The other use of mice tn the war was in discriminating between the various types of pneumonia prevalent at

different times. Different types of the disease are treated differently, but it is often found impossible to discriminate between the different classes of symptoms in men. When mice were inoculated with the germs, however, effects were produced which readily classified the disease. Doctor Wood reported that various changes in cancer statistics has resulted during the war, especially in England, where large classes of the population had been sent to the war, but that a careful analysis of the figures showed that the changes were mainly due to dislocation of classes of population, not to any remarkable Increase or decrease in the disease itself. ' , Death Rate Jumped. r As cancer is most prevalent in persons over the military age, the proportion of deaths from this cause naturally Jumped, where the proportion of men of younger ages was reduced. In this country, likewise, the records were found to show that cancer was most prevalent in Vermont and least so tn Vtah and Montana, but this was explained as being due to the fact that a large percentage of the youth .of Vermont had migrated and that a larger proportion of the population in the western states was composed of newcomers, generally young men and women. Among countries, cancer mortality was greater tn Switzerland,, and was highest generally where the highest civilization was found. Doctor Wood supposes this to be due, not to any connection between cancer and a high state of civilization, but to the fact that cancer Is less often diagnosed and reported as the cause of death in Countries like Russia.