Purpose: Neoadjuvant treatment is often given for locally advanced malignancies; however, clinical and experimental studies have shown that some chemotherapeutic agents impair wound healing. It has been reported that granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) applied locally improves dermal wound healing. Thus, we investigated the effects of locally injected GM-CSF on abdominal wounds impaired by adriamycin, a widely used chemotherapeutic agent.
Methods: We divided 120 female Sprague-Dawley rats into five treatment groups of 24 rats. Group 1 received saline 8 mg/kg intravenously (i.v.) + laparotomy 14 days later (control); group 2 received 8 mg/kg i.v. adriamycin + laparotomy 14 days later; group 3 received adriamycin 8 mg/kg i.v. + laparotomy + local GM-CSF 50 microg 14 days later; group 4 received saline 8 mg/kg i.v. + laparotomy + local GM-CSF 50 microg 14 days later; and group 5 received adriamycin 8 mg/kg i.v. + laparotomy + systemic GM-CSF 50 microg 14 days later. Sutures were removed on postoperative day (POD) 7 in all five groups, and the abdominal bursting pressures were measured and recorded. Tissue samples were taken from the incision line for histopathological evaluation and hydroxyproline content measurement.
Results: The bursting pressure was significantly lower in groups 2 and 5 than in groups 1, 3, and 4. The hydroxyproline content and histopathological findings supported this result.
Conclusion: The local injection of GM-CSF improved impaired wound healing in adriamycin-treated rats.