Walker carcinossarcoma 256 has a great interest as experimental model for studies on tumoral biology. OBJECTIVE: develop a kidney tumor model to be used in the evaluation of the biological behavior of neoplasms in vitro and in vivo environments. METHODS: twenty adult male Wistar rats weighting between 250-300 g were obtained from the Federal University of the Ceará Experimental Surgery Laboratory. Upon ether anesthesia, the right kidney of each animal was accessed through a supraumbelical incision and inoculated with a solution containing 3 x 10(5) tumor cells (Walker 256 carcinossarcoma tumor cells). Following anesthetic recovery the rats were returned to their cages, housed individually and allowed to eat and drink ad libitum. RESULTS: the post-operative average survival was 14 days. Tumor growth was encountered in all animals. The rats exhibited destruction of the kidney, invasion of the adjacent structures, but absence of metastasis. CONCLUSION: the kidney Walker tumor model proved to be an excellent tool for experimental studies on tumor behavior, due to its rapid growth and its easy reproduction.
Tumoral model; Walker carcinossarcoma; Kidney tumor; Cancer