Effect of Various Goiter-Producing Diets on the Growth of Carcinoma, Sarcoma, and Melanoma in Animals

Abstract

It is said that in Switzerland, where goiter is prevalent, the incidence of cancer is much higher than in the south of Europe. Although certain authorities maintain that no relation exists between the incidence of cancer and goiter, the fact is known that the metabolism of the cancer cell is more active than that of the normal cell, and that the marked cellular hyperplasia of severe Graves' disease equals that of some malignant tumors (1). The present study was undertaken for the purpose of determining the influence of a diet either deficient in iodine or rich in iodine, upon the growth of tumors in animals.