Aim: To investigate the therapeutic effect of boanmycin (BAM, bleomycin A6) on colon carcinoma 26 and its hepatic metastasis in mice.
Methods: A series of models including subcutaneous transplantation, orthotopic transplantation in cecum subserosa, intra-hepatic transplantation of tumor, and intrasplenic transplantation of tumor accompanied with hepatic metastases were employed. In addition, LEICA Q 500IW image analysis system was used to determine the area of metastatic lesions in the liver in histopathological sections.
Results: BAM at 5 mg.kg-1 and 2.5 mg.kg-1 inhibited the growth of subcutaneous tumors by 78.7% and 61.9%, and the orthotopic tumors by 99.4% and 90.0%; and the intra-hepatic tumors by 86.9% and 75.7%, respectively. Determined by the numbers of metastatic nodules, BAM at 10 mg.kg-1 and 5 mg.kg-1 inhibited hepatic metastases from intra-splenic transplantation by 97.6% and 56.8%; and evaluated by image analysis of metastatic lesions, by 100% and 63.3%, respectively.
Conclusion: Boanmycin is highly effective in a panel of models including the subcutaneous, orthotopic, intra-hepatic transplanted tumors, and hepatic metastases of murine colon carcinoma 26.