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Description of Aortic Tumour. 
a 
An infected aorta when freshly opened from the ventral or anterior 
surface shows a variable number of irregularly rounded pearly tumours 
projecting into the interior of the vessel. Sometimes there is only 
one solitary tumour. Rarely there are as many as 20, but the usual 
number is from 2 to 5. These are confined to the posterior aorta, but in 7 
out of the 67 cases recorded above these tumours occupied the anterior 
aorta as well. 
In six of these seven cases, the number of worms in the anterior aorta 
was one whilst the remaining one contained three. 
The distribution of worms in these seven cases was as follows :— 
Worms in 
Total. 
Anterior Aorta. 
Posterior Aorta. 
1 
3 
4 
3 
17 
20 
1 
1 
3 
4 
1 
7 
8 
1 
i 7 
18 
1 
— 
1 
In the last case the only worm present was in the anterior aorta. 
The tumour measures from .5 to 2 cm. across, and its surface, especially 
in the lower half, is of a smooth pearly lustre. The base is circular and the 
whole tumour is conical in shape. 
From the lowermost point close to the place of attachment of the 
tumour to the intima springs the worm, varying in length from 8 to 30 cm., 
but usually 22 to 25 cm. when sexually mature. In life the worm floats 
about in the blood and follows the direction of the flow, i.e., backwards. 
The few worms situated in the anterior aorta are, however, attached to the 
anterior part of the tumour and their bodies carried forwards by the blood 
stream either into the common carotid or the brachial. 
These tumours are hard and somewhat fibrous to the feel but their 
coats are quite smooth and form a striking contrast to the rest of the intima 
which is often roughened. 
The worm may be dissected out of one of these tumours by means of 
dissecting needles with cutting edges. The tissue of the tumour is carefully 
torn away from below upwards along the path of the hidden worm and any 
tough tissue encountered is cut away with fine scissors. 
