Biological characteristics of carcinomatosa pleuritis in orthotopic model systems using immune-deficient rats.

We assessed the association of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) on the formation of carcinomatosa pleuritis in orthotopic model systems. Immune-deficient rats were inoculated with PC-14 cells into i) a subpleural space of the parietal pleura after pneumonectomy or ii) into the thoracic cavity directly. The rats bearing tumor cells were randomly separated into two groups: non-treatment and treatment with anti-VEGF neutralizing antibody groups. At the time of the autopsy, all rats developed gross pleural dissemination with/without malignant effusions. In the first model, despite no significant difference in the mean volume of the subpleural tumors between the groups, the degree of dissemination was suppressed in the treatment group with less tumor vasculature and with reduced expression of autocrine motility factor receptor (AMFR) in tumor cells. In the second model, although the inhibitory effect on dissemination was not clear, the formation of pleural effusion was inhibited in the treatment group. In addition to the ability of vascular permeability, the results demonstrated here showed the possible association of VEGF with the development of pleural dissemination/metastasis in the context of blood/lymphatic routes and cancer cell motility affected by AMFR.