PRODUCTS, ADVENTITIOUS. 



119 



Growths consist of hollow vesicular bodies 

 or cells. The quantity of these cells varies 

 extremely in different genera of Growths ; 

 constituting the greater part of the mass of 

 simple sarcoma and of enchonclroma, abun- 

 dant in colloid cancer, they are comparatively 

 rare in scirrhus, and may be sought for in 

 vain in the main substance of fibrous tumours. 



In form the cells of Growths are sphe- 

 roidal, as in sarcoma ; or ovoid, as in enchon- 

 droma ; and plump, or flattened, and discoid, 

 in proportion to the abundance of their con- 

 tents. 



In respect of size they vary within wide 

 limits, from the simple tact that it is the 

 nature of some to go on increasing in bulk 

 (for instance, the cells of colloid and of en- 

 chondrorna), of others to retain persistently 

 the dimensions originally acquired. This ana- 

 tomical distinction is connected with a very 

 important physiological difference in the mode 

 of increase of Growths. We do not depart 

 much from the truth in assigning ^Vo anc ^ 

 gig of an inch as the extreme measurements 

 of these bodies. Further, the cells of the 

 same Growth vary in size, independently of 

 endogenous enlargement. 



Cells are either set beside each other, and 

 cohere by their contiguous walls, or they re- 

 main free. 



The thickness and transparency of the 

 wall of cells vary; the wall may be collapsed 

 and corrugated, or stretched and smooth ; the 

 nucleus (when this exists) of the cell may be 

 distinctly parietal or not. 



The contents of cells are of four kinds : 

 fluid; granules; nuclei; young cells. Fluid, 

 in more or less abundance, is constantly pre- 

 sent in sound cells ; upon its amount mainly 

 depends the plump or shrivelled aspect of 

 these. Granules exist in abundance in the 

 cells of sarcoma and of scirrhus. A free 

 nucleus may be found sometimes in the cell of 

 colloid cancer and of enchondroma. Young 

 cells, themselves provided with a free or parietal 

 nucleus, are seen in the interior of the large 

 cells of the two Growths just named. 



(r.) The next element requiring consider- 

 ation is the Nucleus. Nuclei are found in 

 the great majority of Growths ; either free, 

 in connection with cells (parietal or central), 

 or attached to fibres. Free solid-looking cor- 

 puscles are found in the substance of scir- 

 rhus; these appear (whether generated free 

 as they are seen, or originally connected with 

 cells, and released by the disintegration of 

 these) to be the germs of future cells. Of 

 the parietal and central nucleus enough has 

 already been said. The slightly granulated 

 look of the fibres of Fibrous Growth depends 

 on the permanent character of their nuclei, 

 which appear set superficially in their sub- 

 stance. In whatever condition nuclei exist, 

 they are distinguishable commonly by their 

 comparative opacity; this is rendered more 

 obvious by acetic acid, which increases the 

 transparency of cell-walls, or by ioduretted 

 solutions, in consequence of the tendency of 

 nuclei to absorb coloured matters. 



(r/.) Fibrils. Fibrillar substance occurs in 

 Growths in many varieties of form and de- 

 grees of abundance. 



Peculiar fibres, of excessive transparency 

 and delicacy, constitute the chief mass of the 

 "fasciculate" variety of cancer. " It is im- 

 possible," as we have elsewhere said, " to 

 look at these fibrils without being struck with 

 their similarity to those of the buffy coat of 

 the blood, or without conceiving the idea that 

 blastema has been produced in connection 

 with extravasated blood." 



Fibres, differing but little from those of 

 natural fibrous tissue, form the staple element 

 of fibrous Growths, and are abundant in 

 scirrhus. 



An appearance of fibrous structure is pro- 

 duced in some Growths by linear juxtapo- 

 sition of fusiform or straight caudate cells. 

 These corpuscles have the aspect of spherical 

 cells with two opposite points of their periphery 

 prolonged into very minute tapering fibrils. 

 (See ,/?' 93, p. 127.) Usually single, the fibril 

 is sometimes bifid. The cell is obscurely nucle- 

 ated, and frequently granulated ; excessively 

 abundant in sarcoma and cysto-sarcoma, ap- 

 pearing occasionally in hoematoma, cystoma, 

 angeiectoma. melanoma, and carcinoma, they 

 cannot be discovered in fibroma. Their pre- 

 sence signifies that of blastema of simple 

 plastic character; and there is no certain 

 evidence that the proper cell of cancer (in 

 which formation they were at one time sup- 

 posed to be of peculiar significance) is capable 

 of assuming the perfectly fusiform shape. Our 

 opinion on this point has of late grown much 

 more decided. A shapelessly caudate cell, with 

 irregularly curved fibrils, or lateral superadded 

 fibril, is more closely allied to cancer, and will 

 be described with that product. 



The accidental and non-essential elements 

 of Growths belong to the other divisions of 

 Adventitious Product. From the class Pre- 

 cipitates may be found saline matter, amor- 

 phous or crystalline, in minute quantity, or 

 so abundant as to convert (in the instance of 

 fibroma) portions of a Growth into true con- 

 cretions. Fat occurs in the various forms 

 mentioned in a previous page ; rare in some 

 genera, as fibroma and enchondroma; it 

 abounds in carcinoma. From the order De- 

 posits appear melanic matter and pus ; the 

 latter an element generated by inflammation 

 in Growths as in natural textures. Growths, 

 too, of one kind may (as entozoa of one 

 species grow in the bodies of another) find a 

 nidus for development in Growths of a dif- 

 ferent kind ; cancer may thus appear within 

 the area of an erectile tumour. 



Exudation-Products exhibit themselves in 

 the form of compound-granule corpuscles and 

 induration-matter ; while of Pseudo-tissues, 

 there occur epithelium, cartilage, cellular, 

 serous, fibrous, elastic, osseous, cutaneous, 

 pilous, and dental tissues ; the last three 

 limited to Cystoma. 



The elementary cells of Growths may 

 either lie in juxtaposition, or interspaces, 

 filled with so-called intercell substance, may 



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