The Uptake of Radioactive Phosphorus in Normal Brain and Brain Tumours

Abstract

Radioactive phosphorus was administered to 34 patients with intracranial space-occupying lesions. The relative concentrations in 13 histologically proved tumours were found to range from 0·9:1 to 34:1. There seems to be some evidence that the uptake of phosphorus decreases with increasing differentiation of astrocytomas. This may be due to the higher degree of cellularity of the less differentiated tumours. The specific activity of normal brain tissue appears to be not more than half the average specific activity of the body as a whole and is usually less. The specific activity of cellular tumour tissue varies widely, but is considerably above the upper limit of the specific activity of normal brain tissue. Some sources of inaccuracy in the technique used are discussed, but it is believed that sufficient evidence has been obtained to show that a needle counter would be a useful tool in the investigation of brain tumours if the technical difficulties of constructing a suitable instrument for use in the operating theatre could be overcome.