Predictive testing of vulvar and cervical cancers to chemotherapy by the subrenal capsule assay.

The 6-day subrenal capsule assay (SRCA) in normal immunocompetent mice was used to assess response of vulvar and cervical cancers to chemotherapy. Twenty-five out of 31 assays (81%) were evaluable. The previously treated tumors tended to be less sensitive than the untreated tumors (20 vs 33%). Three to five cytotoxic drugs or drug combinations were tested against each individual tumor. In the whole material the combination of cisplatin and etoposide (VP-16) was significantly more effective than bleomycin (P less than 0.01, chi 2 test). The combinations adriamycin + cyclophosphamide + cisplatin and cyclophosphamide + methotrexate were also rather effective. Preliminary clinical correlations were positive. The reliability of the SRCA was discussed, and it was concluded that the assay is a promising predictive method for individualizing chemotherapy.