Enhancement by thyroxine of gastric carcinogenesis induced by N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine in Wistar rats.

The affects of L-thyroxine (T4) on the incidence and histology of gastric cancers induced by N-methyl-N''-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG), and on the labelling index of gastric mucosal epithelial cells were investigated in Wistar rats. After oral treatment with MNNG for 25 weeks, the rats received s.c. injections of T4 (0.2 microgram kg-1) in depot form every other day until the end of the experiment in Week 52. This long-term treatment with T4 significantly increased the incidence of gastric cancers in Week 52. However, it did not influence the histological type of the gastric cancers. It also caused significant increases in the labelling indices of the fundic and antral epithelial cells. These findings indicate that T4 enhances the development of gastric cancers, and that its effect may be related to its effect in increasing proliferation of gastric epithelial cells.