The growth of an established murine non-Hodgkin lymphoma tumour is limitedby switching to a phytohaemagglutinin-containing diet

The growth of a non-Hodgkin lymphoma, developing subcutaneously as a solid tumour in NMRI mice, is markedly diminished by including phytohaemagglutini n (PHA), a lectin present in raw kidney bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), in the d iet. In the experiment described in this communication the effect of first allowing tumours to develop for 5 days before switching the mice to a diet containing PHA at different concentrations was tested to establish whether or not feeding the lectin at late times also resulted in reducing tumour gr owth. This switch of diet indeed proved to be effective in slowing down gro wth of the lymphoma tumour. The reduced rate of growth occurs in a dose-dep endent manner. We have suggested that a competition between the gut epithel ium undergoing PHA-stimulated hyperplasia and the developing tumour may occ ur for polyamines and other nutrients from a common body pool and this coul d be an important contributory factor with regard to the observed low level of tumour growth following the feeding of PHA-containing diet. Recent data which showed that the level of hyperplasia of the small bowel in response to feeding the PHA diets was higher in non-injected mice compared to those which had been injected with tumour cells substantiated the concept of comp etition between gut and tumour for nutrients and other requirements for gro wth. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.