10 PREFACE 



It is important to note that Dr. Eantham, 

 using our methods, has succeeded not only in 

 inducing the division of Entamoeba coli, but also 

 in causing this parasite to multiply through five 

 generations without transplantation entirely by 

 the action of "auxetics." l This is strong 

 confirmatory evidence of our work. 



As the line of experimentation which we are 

 employing differs from those adopted by other 

 workers in cancer research, as shown by recently 

 published Reports, 2 it may be valuable to explain 

 this difference, and to summarise briefly the main 

 principles underlying the solution of the problem. 

 It has already been pointed out that cancer 

 consists essentially of a growth composed of cells 

 which are reproducing themselves too rapidly. 

 In the malignant tissue the balance between cell- 

 reproduction and cell-death is not maintained, the 

 proliferation being excessive. In order to find 

 the cause of the disease, therefore, researches 

 must be directed towards finding the exciting 

 cause of this excessive cell-reproduction. Un- 

 fortunately, the immediate cause of normal 

 apart from excessive or abnormal cell-division 

 has hitherto not been known, and hence, before 

 one can attack the cancer problem, it would 

 appear that the exact cause of normal cell 

 proliferation must also be elucidated. 



1 See a paper by H. B. Fantham, D.Sc. London, in The Annals of 

 Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Vol. V., No. 1, April 1911. 



2 The most recent Report is that of the Imperial Cancer Research 

 Fund, issued on July 20, 1911, which describes the present position 

 of the researches being conducted by that Fund. A new Italian 

 journal, Tumori, August 1911, edited by G. Fichera and published in 

 Borne, gives an excellent epitome of recent work done on the subject, 



