Seven days after a subcutaneous inoculation of 5 x 10(5) P388 leukemia cells into the foot pad of the left hind paw of donor mouse, aclarubicin (0.2 mg/kg body weight) was injected subcutaneously into the hind paw of the opposite foot pad in the form of ACR-CH or aclarubicin aqueous solution. On day 10, the left popliteal and the lower para-aortic lymph nodes taken from each donor were transferred intraperitoneally to a normal recipient mouse. The combined survival time of recipients and the viable P388 leukemia cell number in popliteal and para-aortic lymph nodes were estimated with a calibration formula. Our results showed that the survival curve of recipients given ACR-CH was statistically improved compared with that of other treatment groups.