Figure 3
Comparison of therapeutic effect. (A) BW curves. The combined therapy noticeably minimized the BW loss. a P < 0.01, b P > 0.05, c P < 0.001 compared with control at the end of 5 weeks of treatment. (B1) Tumor volumes. Tumor volumes in the control, SYY, IFN-α, and SYY + IFN-α groups were 1205.2 ± 581.3 mm3, 724.9 ± 337.6 mm3, 507.6 ± 367.0 mm3, and 245.3 ± 181.2 mm3, respectively. *P < 0.05, †P < 0.01, ‡P < 0.001 compared with control. (B2) Tumors in different groups with decreasing tendency. Tumor inhibition rate in 4 groups was 39.9% (SYY group), 57.9% (IFN-α group), and 79.6% (SYY + IFN-α group), respectively. (C) The mean number of lung metastatic nodules in 4 groups. Six mice from each group were humanely killed 48 hours after the final treatment. Paraffin blocks of 10% buffered formalin-fixed samples of lung tissues were prepared, serial sections were cut at 5 μm, and pulmonary metastatic nodules were verified with hematoxylin and eosin stain. *P > 0.05, †P < 0.05, ‡P < 0.01 compared with control. (D) Survival curves among groups. The remaining 12 mice of each group were maintained on the designated therapies until death to determine their lifespan. a P < 0.05, b P < 0.01, c P < 0.001 compared with control. The bars indicate the means ± SD.