Robertson, L.S.

English

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14 Oktober 1961 S.A. TYDSKRIF VIR GE EE KUNDE 861cross-section and in appropriate section non-protruding oper-uJa could be seen. Between the inner and outer hells radialslrialions were prominent. The embryo was in many instancesclearly segmented. These features erve to di tinguish theseeggs from tho e of Trichocephalus.DISCUSSIONCapillaria (Hepaticola) hepatica (Bancroft , 1 93) Travas-o , 1915, is an aphasmid nematode primarily parasitic inthe liver of rodents. Like those of its better-known relative,T. trichiura, its eggs must undergo a period of externaldevelopment before being able to infect a new host. Theappropriate conditions of temperature, moisture and avail-ability of oxygen are similar to those required by the eggsof Ascaris lumbricoides.Since the adults and the eggs are imprisoned in the liver,usually in connective tissue, it is difficult to conceive howthe eggs reach the exterior, for they are seldom released inthe faeces of infected hosts. It is now generally acceptedthat the eggs can only be released from the liver byputrefaction or by digestion in the gut of another animal,wheth'er a carnivore or a scavenger. It has recently been,hown' that the rodents themselves, being cannibals, per-form this function. Thus, to complete the cycle, the parasitepa es through 2 animals, the econd merely freeing theegg from the ti ue of the fir t and thus permitting theembryo to rea h the en ironment necessary for its furtherdevelopment.Thus infection of man with this para ite could notfollow the eating of rats, but mo t likely re ults from theingestion of rat faeces which have been exposed to theair for ome time.Thi is the second case of human infection reported inSouth Africa, the fir t being that described by Cochraneer al....SUMMARYA case of human infection with Capillaria hepatica des-cribed.Our thanks are due to Dr. S. Disler, Medical Superintendent,King Edward VIU Hospilal, and to Prof. J. Wainwright of theDepartment of Pathology, University of Natal, for permissionto publish this case.REFERENCESI. Cochrane, 1. C .. Sagorin, L. and WiJcocks, M. G. (1957): S.Afr.Med I., 31. 751.2. Freeman. R. S. and Wrlght. K. A. (1960): J. Parasit., 46, 373.3. Cochrane, 1. C. and Skinslad, E. E. (1960): S.Afr. Med. J., ]4, 21.EXFOLIATIVE CYTOLOGY CELL EXAMINATION: A PILOT EXPERIME TLEWIS S. ROBERTSO , President of the ational Cancer Association of South AfricaOr. Robertson recently made the following statement:·It gives me great pleasure indeed to announce that, aftermonth of negoliation, agreement has been reached in regardto a pilot experiment - the first to be conducted in SouthAfrica - which will be organized jointly under the auspicesof the Municipality of Brakpan and the ational CancerA ociation of South Africa. The object is to determine theaveral!e demand from South African women for exfoliativecytology smears to be taken in response to a concentratedpublic education campaign. The exfoliative cytology cellexamination for uterine cancer is essentially a cancer-delectiontest, the material for which is simply, easily, quickly and pain-lessly laken.Brakpan was selected for the experiment by virtue of theearly interest and representations of the Medical Officer ofHealth, Dr. H. Bloomberg, in the project of a cancer-screen-ing clinic and because it is regarded as an average SouthAfrican urban area with a European female population overlhe age of 21 of approximately 10,000. All services will berendered free to Brakpan women and no means test will beapplied. All cost will be borne jointly by the National CancerAs ocialion and the Municipality of Brakpan.Uterine cancer, if discovered and treated early, is one of themo I curable forms of cancer. At present only about 55% ofulerine cancer cases are cured because they are usuallyalready firmly establi hed when detected. If the pilot experi-ment which we propose to conduct meets with the desiredre pon e from the adult female population, it may very wellre uh in reducing cancer of the womb a a cause of death inBrakpan.Al the spearhead of the community-wide educational cam-paign in Brakpan will be the Association's film 'Time and twowomen' which is al 0 available in Afrikaan under the title.Tyd en twee vroue'. Descriptive pamphlets will also be widelydistributed. Several screenings will take place at the municipalclinic daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. during the month ofovember to enable all women to see the film. Dr. H. Bloom-berg, Medical Officer of Health, will prepare a tape recordingof his lecture 10 be played back to audiences before everyfilm show. Exfoliative cytology smear will be taken fromthose women who desire it, and examined under the super-vision of lhe South African Institute for Medical Research.The examinalions will be by appointment only, during theperiod ovember 1961 - February 1961. Doubtful and pre-umptive posilive lide detected by pecially trained cyto-technicians will be referred for pecialist diagnosi to patholo-gi t at the Soulh African Institute for Medical Research.Similar te ts carried out in lhe Uniled Stale revealed thatout of every 1,000 apparently healthy women examined by thistechnique. at least 5 were found to have cancer ill sitll. TheBrakpan experimem will serve to establish the comparablefigure for South Africa. In addition, the experiment will pro-vide valuable basic information, a blue-print as it were, toother municipalities who may subsequently wish to tackle theproblem of uterine-cancer detection as a matter of routine.The lessons to be learned in Brakpan and the problems en-countered should prove to be invaluable for the future.As tated earlier, the exfoliative cytology cell examinationof uterine cancer is essentially a cancer-detection test. It isutilized to trace this form of cancer in its earliest (in situ)stage where lhe disease is already pre ent in apparentlyhealthy women. When discovered in the e very early stagesthe chance of cure by means of radium, X-ray and/or surgeryi almo I 100%. The test would obviate lhe problem whichface the medical profession today, namely, lhat ulerine canceris usually diagnosed only afler patients have di covered symp-toms connected Wilh the advanced slages of lhe di ea e whenit is naturally more difficult to cure. Therefore, the pilotexperiment should prove invaluable, not only from thecientific and talistical point of view, but will materiallyincrease lhe chance of complete cure of tho e women whoalready have the disease but do not realize it. Their earlyconditions will almost certainly be cured - a highly de irablestate of affair which may not otherwi e be achieved if thedisease were left to develop until the symptoms of the advancedform of the disease were to manife t themselves.'

Exfoliative cytology cell examination: a pilot experiment

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Exfoliative cytology cell examination: a pilot experiment

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