ASSOCIATION BETWEEN BLEOMYCIN GENOTOXICITY AND NONCONSTITUTIONAL RISK-FACTORS FOR HEAD AND NECK-CANCER

Sensitivity of phytohaemagglutinin-stimulated lymphocytes to bleomycin clastogenicity is increased in patients with tumours in organs and ti ssues that are in direct contact with the external environment, such a s the mucosa of the head and neck [5]. Sensitivity to bleomycin may re flect a genetically determined hypersensitivity to certain genotoxican ts and therefore may be important in the carcinogenic process. In this study the applicability of bleomycin genotoxicity was investigated in cultured lymphocytes of forty individuals without a tumour history. N o correlations were observed with increasing age or the well-known hea d and neck cancer risk factors alcohol and tobacco consumption. Since inter-individual variation in sensitivity greatly exceeded intra-indiv idual variation, our results suggest that an elevated bleomycin clasto genicity score may identify individuals who have a constitutional hype rsensitivity towards certain genotoxicants and may show an increased c ancer susceptibility.