The Pulmonary Lymph Flow after Irradiation of the Lungs of Dogs

¹ Departments of Experimental Surgery, Radiology, and Medicine, Mount Zion Hospital and Medical Center, San Francisco, California

The pulmonary lymph flow, measured by our previously published method, is reported in ten dogs after irradiation to anterior mediastinal portals which included the medial one-third of both lungs. In group A (six dogs) the lymph flow of the lung was measured immediately after the course of radiation and in group B (four dogs) a period of about five months elapsed. Our results show that the lymph flow in the lungs of dogs after exposure to radiation is not altered appreciably either immediately after the completion of a course of radiation or after a delay of several months. The implication is that neither the initial radiation nor the later fibrosis significantly interferes with the lymphatic channels. Alterations in the parenchyma of the lung such as patchy edema and severe chronic pneumonitis are not quantitatively reflected in the pulmonary lymph flow.