Biological Testing Committee Discussions, 1970

The Biological Testing Committee at Southampton provided oversight, review, and direction for the BAT toxicology research program. BAT-funded contract research as well as work funded by the UK industry group as a whole was discussed at these meetings. Committee membership usually consisted of BAT scientists in the United Kingdom, but individuals from other BAT companies in the UK industry group occasionally were present. Minutes from some of the meetings held between 1968 and 1977 are available in the documents. The minutes involve technical issues and it is often difficult to understand what is being discussed

apart from the context. However, the general subject is the experiments on various product modifications and innovations to learn what maneuvers might lower the carcinogenic potential of cigarettes.

Two notes, one concerning inhalation, from a meeting held in May 1970 (the eighteenth meeting of this committee), and one on carbon monoxide, from a meeting in October of the same year, are included here as examples of these discussions.

The minutes of the discussion of inhalation tests read,

There was an extensive discussion of inhalation tests. Dr. Sanford [B&W], Dr. Fordyce [UK] and Mr. Wade [Canada] urged that BAT should be actively engaged in inhalation tests in the near future. It was agreed, however, that at present an inhalation test which led to the production of cancer and which could be used for the comparison of different cigarettes was not available. Dr. Green [UK] suggested that the development of these tests could be left to the industry [cooperative laboratory at Harrogate]. With regard to shorter-term tests, [the Imperial Tobacco Company laboratories at] Huntingdon were obtaining encouraging results on the mouse-irritancy screen, a goblet cell test and a macrophage test. Dr. Bentley suggested that these should be available within about 12 months. It was agreed that BAT should wait for these tests to be developed rather than attempt to duplicate the work at the present time. Similarly, the development of the "monkey-smoking" programme at Huntingdon would be followed with great interest. {1164.06, pp. 3–4}

In its public statements, B&W was insisting that the evidence did not support the hypothesis that smoking caused cancer {2110.06, pp. 6–10}. Here, a group of BAT scientists clearly stated their expectation that an inhalation test would be developed that "would lead to the production of cancer" and expressed an eagerness to have such a test available as a tool for comparing different cigarettes. Thus, the issue was a comparison of how different cigarettes caused cancer, not whether smoking caused cancer. In addition, the industry position was that even a successful inhalation test showing cancer causation in animals would not be indicative of cancer causation in humans. Yet the BAT scientists embraced animal inhalation tests for this very purpose. In the meantime, they continued to use mouse skin painting for purposes of evaluating human toxicity.

The brief mention of work under way at Imperial's laboratory in Huntingdon reflects an information-sharing arrangement between BAT and Imperial. The agreement covered exchanges of research results on smoking and health issues as well as on leaf characteristics, agronomy, and machinery evaluation {1171.02}. The documents do not contain any information about the monkey-smoking work, but chapter 3 discusses

a series of experiments at Imperial on the pharmacology of nicotine; monkeys were used as subjects in these experiments.

Carbon monoxide was discussed at a committee meeting in October 1970.

It was considered that it was still very important to reduce the level of carbon monoxide in cigarette smoke. It is a known poison present in relatively large amounts and, despite the lack of success in developing a suitable filter, efforts should be continued. {1164.06, p. 4}

As will be described later, carbon monoxide was to continue to be a problem. However, as time went on, the nature of the problem became more one of public relations and the avoidance of regulatory oversight than the reduction of toxicity for its own sake.