The gene transfer-misrepair hypothesis of radiation carcinogenesis tested for induction of mammary tumours in rats.

Mammary tumour induction was studied in female WAG/Rij rats following exposure with single doses of 0.3 and 1.2 Gy gamma radiation and with the same total doses delivered in fractions of 2.5 and 10 mGy respectively at intervals of 12 h. All rats were implanted with pellets containing 2 mg of estradiol-17 beta prior to the irradiation. The occurrence of mammary carcinomas and of fibroadenomas was recorded. The relative excess hazard for tumour induction was lower for the fractionated regimens than for the single dose exposures. The results are compatible with the predictions of the gene transfer-misrepair hypothesis for radiation carcinogenesis.