The Production of Ocular and Orbital Neoplasms by Intra-Arterial Inoculation of Tumor Cells from the Walker Carcinosarcoma 256

¹ Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario.
² Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario.; Formerly of the Department of Pathology, University of Toronto.

The behavior of tumor cells in the ocular and orbital tissues was studied by injecting cell suspensions from Walker carcinosarcoma 256 into the right common carotid artery of Wistar rats. The animals were sacrificed at different postoperative periods up to 12 days, and the intra- and extraocular tissues were examined microscopically. Tumors developed in the ocular and orbital tissues in about one third of the animals, but only after a latent period of 3 to 5 days. During this timeisolated tumor cells or clumps of 2 to 4 cells were detected but never any larger cell collections. Most of the ocular and orbital structures excepting the cornea, lens, and vitreous were involved. The right orbit, right eye, left orbit, and, left eye were affected in that order of frequency. The low incidence of tumors on the left side probably resulted from most of the circidating tumor cells being trapped in the lung tissues.