Carcinogenic Risks: strategies for Intervention

671 histologist's report and the immunologist's functional finding. This is a mammoth task when one realises that there were over 1500 references to be reviewed in the 1977 literature alone. It is not surprising, therefore, that in this, his 3rd annual review, Clive Taylor has invited other workers from the University of California to assist. The subject matter covers a wide range of conditions which may be considered to fall under the general heading of malignant lymphoma, including lymphocytic leukaemias and myeloma. The first third of the review deals with surface marker, ultrastructure, cytochemistry, genetic and kinetic studies of lymphoid malignancies. The rest of the review deals in detail with the pathological and clinical aspects of the different disease groups. The authors are to be congratulated that the subjects are dealt with in a clear, easily readable style rather than a simple list of references. Despite the high quality of the reviewers , after reading the chapter on the pathologic classification of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, I felt that the quote of R. Willis (1948) which opened Chapter 1 was still true: "Nowhere in pathology has a chaos of names so clouded clear concepts as in the subject of lymphoid tumours". Research workers and clinicians alike will find this a valuable review of a difficult subject. This is the third book in this series covering all aspects of breast cancer; its subtitle "Current Topics" aptly describes the range of contributions to the book, and the chapters are all written by experts in their particular field. The authors give lucid evaluations of the present state of research into the basic biology of breast cancer and into modem techniques of assessment and treatment of the disease. There are chapters on the factors influencing metastasis and on mechanisms of tumour regression. Much attention is paid to the effect of the hormone environment on the natural history of the disease, in both males and females. All are intriguing, as they pose as many questions as they answer and they pinpoint avenues of future research. The position of steroid-receptor analysis in the assessment of breast cancer is well established , and the chapter by the editor of this book, Bill McGuire and his co-worker Gary Chamness, gives a clear summary of the assay methods available, and some of the pitfalls that may be encountered by newcomers to the field. There is an interesting chapter on mam-mography which …

histologist's report and the immunologist's functional finding. This is a mammoth task when one realises that there were over 1500 references to be reviewed in the 1977 literature alone. It is not surprising, therefore, that in this, his 3rd annual review, Clive Taylor has invited other workers from the University of California to assist.
The subject matter covers a wide range of conditions which may be considered to fall under the general heading of malignant lymphoma, including lymphocytic leukaemias and myeloma. The first third of the review deals with surface marker, ultrastructure, cytochemistry, genetic and kinetic studies of lymphoid malignancies. The rest of the review deals in detail with the pathological and clinical aspects of the different disease groups. The authors are to be congratulated that the subjects are dealt with in a clear, easily readable style rather than a simple list of references. Despite the high quality of the reviewers, after reading the chapter on the pathologic classification of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, I felt that the quote of R. Willis (1948) which opened Chapter 1 was still true: "Nowhere in pathology has a chaos of names so clouded clear concepts as in the subject of lymphoid tumours".
Research workers and clinicians alike will find this a valuable review of a difficult subject.
J This is the third book in this series covering all aspects of breast cancer; its subtitle "Current Topics" aptly describes the range of contributions to the book, and the chapters are all written by experts in their particular field. The authors give lucid evaluations of the present state of research into the basic biology of breast cancer and into modem techniques of assessment and treatment of the disease.
There are chapters on the factors influencing metastasis and on mechanisms of tumour regression. Much attention is paid to the effect of the hormone environment on the natural history of the disease, in both males and females. All are intriguing, as they pose as many questions as they answer and they pin-point avenues of future research.
The position of steroid-receptor analysis in the assessment of breast cancer is well established, and the chapter by the editor of this book, Bill McGuire and his co-worker Gary Chamness, gives a clear summary of the assay methods available, and some of the pitfalls that may be encountered by newcomers to the field.
There is an interesting chapter on mammography which summarizes the recent reports on the risks and benefits from the procedure, and the author emphasizes the factors that should be considered before launching into screening programmes.
The real value of the book is that it has been written by people actively involved in their particular area of breast-cancer research. Each author gives a comprehensive literature survey and builds on that background to highlight the direction in which they think that research should proceed in the future. The object of the symposium was to highlight experiences and problems in this subject area which spans scientific, legislative and public opinions. The reader is spared a detailed description of legislative actions in various countries, although sufficient information is provided to give a flavour of the legislative approach in France, Finland, Sweden, the U.K. and U.S.A.
The proceedings of the symposium consist of 25 papers organized into an introduction, 5 sections and a summing up, with each section carrying a discussion summary. The 5 sections, on smoking, occupational risks, food additives, drugs and pesticides, measurement of carcinogenic risk and strategies of intervention, use some of the problems and paradoxes in the control of carcinogenic risks to illustrate its complexity. A welcome feature is the attempt by some speakers to identify the role of scientists as those responsible for providing data which should be common to all countries, and the role of legislators and the public in providing judgments of how to control risks to an acceptable level in a particular community. In the first section, on smoking, the techniques required to influence public opinion and reduce the risk of smoking in France and Finland are outlined. Although it is generally accepted that the public should have a major say in deciding the acceptability of risks, the paradox presented by a government deciding to legislate on smoking and then attempting to influence public opinion to support it is not tackled.
The international repercussions of legislation in this field are well illustrated by the chapter on control of aflatoxin. The close control imposed by importing countries on aflatoxin in peanuts has a dramatic effect on the economy and health of those whose country depends on peanut production. The interval between suspicion of a carcinogenic risk and final control of exposure can be very long, as is illustrated by examples of asbestos, 2-naphthylamine and vinyl chloride. The problems of thresholds in carcinogenesis and of comparison between chemical carcinogens and radiation are also discussed.
If the reader is expecting clear indications of how to proceed in legislative or practical control strategies, he will be disappointed, because clarity is not yet present. To the anglophile, the pragmatic but effective control of occupational exposure by the UK government is heartening. The highlight of the conference is in the well-balanced and objective contribution by Dr Higginson in the introduction, and Professor Doll in the summing-up. To those interested in the field, an incentive to read this volume comes from 2 quotatioqi from Higginson: "It should not be forgotten that complex biological processes are not basically altered by legislation or legal definition, however rational", and "I do not believe that the cause of cancer prevention is served by acrimonious adversary tactics and attempts to denigrate the integrity of colleagues." In general it is an interesting, if somewhat superficial, look at the problems posed by legislation and control of carcinogens. It will be of particular value to scientists who do not normally work in this field, because it gives them an insight into the complexity of the issues which have to be tackled. I This book presents the proceedings of a meeting in Milan in the summer of 1977 and covers a wide range of topics in tumour immunology. The list of contributors is impressive, and several of the papers presented give a valuable review of work in progress in different laboratories. The major themes discussed are antigen expression on virally and chemically induced tumours (Comoglio, Baldwin, Parmiani); activation of T-cell cytotoxic mechanisms (Berke, Alexander, Collavo, Keder, Scherter); natural immunity against animal and human tumours (Herberman, Haller, Forni, Della Porta) and studies of antigen expression and immunocompetence in cancer patients (Thompson, Adler, Stein). Consideration is also given to the effects of drug treatments on antigenicity and immunocompetence in animals (Mantovani, Bonmassar) and to the possible use of xenoantisera in therapy (Arnon and Davies).
The book offers an attractive collection of papers on major areas in tumour immunity by recognized authorities. The papers are generally critical and seek to subject the field to the close scrutiny that is necessary if it is to flourish. The extensive reference lists of each contribution are also useful. This book is to be recommended, though it is probable that all the papers have now appeared in the journal literature, as might be expected 2 years after the conference. To have them combined in this form is a realistic addition to any worker's bookshelf.
This is an unusual book in that it presents the accumulated experience of one man over a period of more than 25 years. In the first chapter Dr Lopes Cardozo states his basic philosophy of clinical cytology, detailing the diagnostic range of cytological techniques; this would be useful reading for clinicians as well as cytologists. The second chapter, on criteria of malignancy, needs careful study to appreciate the remainder of the atlas, par-