Leukotriene B4 and oral cancer.

The quantitation of leukotriene B4 (LTB4) in induced squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the Syrian hamster cheek pouch and histologically proven human oral SCC was investigated by a combination of reverse phase-high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) and radioimmunoassay (RIA). Healthy tissue obtained from these same patients and animals treated with vehicle alone were used as controls. From both animal and human studies our results show a 10 to 30 fold increase in the levels of LTB4 found in tumour compared to control tissue. Furthermore, this dihydroxy acid was not detected in the mucosal tissue of normal subjects undergoing routine surgery. Since LTB4 is a potent inflammatory mediator and modulator of immune responses, its presence at biologically active concentrations in human squamous cell carcinoma suggests a possible role in the pathogenesis of head and neck cancer.