RELEASE OF CYTOST 53 



a variety of conditions which we may briefly con- 

 sider. In 1893 the writer had under his care a patient 

 suffering from alcoholism. Curiously enough, al- 

 though the use of alcohol had been discontinued for 

 some months, a marked toxemia persisted. Hence the 

 conclusion was reached that the toxic symptoms evi- 

 dent in the individual in question arose from the ab- 

 sorption of toxic products resulting from the necrosed 

 cells which had been produced by the injuries in- 

 flicted by the previous prolonged ingestion of alco- 

 hol (Turck, 1893). In view of the preceding dis- 

 cussion, we may now assume that in this instance the 

 prolonged use of alcohol had resulted in an autolysis 

 of the tissue cells of the gastrointestinal tract and that 

 the observed symptoms of toxemia were due to the 

 continued absorption of cytost from the injured tis- 

 sues. 



Two years later, while investigating the bacteri- 

 ology of the stomachs of patients with gastric carci- 

 noma, it was found that in such cases the carcinoma 

 created a favorable soil for the microorganisms, par- 

 ticularly lactic acid-producing organisms. Fresh sec- 

 tions of the gastric mucosa which were examined im- 

 mediately after removal showed typical pathological 

 changes incident to inflammation : cells loosened from 

 the membrane, cystic degeneration, mucoid meta- 

 morphosis, marked interstitial changes, leucocytic in- 

 filtration, and engorgement of the blood vessels. The 

 writer stated, "If it is not alone the product formed 

 in the growth of carcinoma of the stomach that causes 

 this inflammatory and rapid destructive process, then 

 the infection from growing pathologic and non- 

 pathologic microorganisms colonizing upon the sur- 



