The present study was undertaken to exploit pathophysiological properties of solid tumours for a tumour-specific therapy. Experiments were carried out on DS-sarcomas implanted s.c. in the hind foot dorsum of Sprague Dawley rats. Treatment strategies included tumour acidification, lactate accumulation and disturbance of the microcirculation by induced systemic hyperglycaemia/hyperlact-acidaemia (15-25/10 mmol/L; for 60 min) as well as localized hyperthermia (water-bath; 43 degrees C, 30 min.). A special infusion solution was developed for the systemic treatment containing glucose, lactic acid and organic buffer without inorganic ions. Growth kinetics of tumour volume and animal survival were taken as endpoints in order to quantify therapeutic efficiency. After a single treatment with combined modalities, i.e., with hyperglycaemia/hyperlactacidaemia and hyperthermia, approximately 50% of the tumours showed complete remission in three independent series of experiments; around 40% of the animals survived more than two months. In the untreated control group, all animals died from the disease within 10-15 days after tumour implantation. The overall effect on tumour volume changes of the combined therapy was supra-additive compared to that of treatment with hyperthermia or hyperglycaemia/hyperlactacidaemia alone. However, treated animals either showed a dramatic response to the combination of treatments with complete tumour remission or hardly responded at all, justifying a subdivision into responders and non-responders. Pathophysiological mechanisms responsible for this behaviour have to be elucidated in future studies. Nevertheless, the present study represents an approach to an efficient tumour therapy with a potential application in clinical oncology in the not too distant future.