TIMP-1 as a tumor marker in breast cancer - an update

TY - JOUR

T1 - TIMP-1 as a tumor marker in breast cancer - an update

AU - Würtz, Sidse Ørnbjerg

AU - Rasmussen, Anne-Sofie Schrohl

AU - Mouridsen, Henning

AU - Brunner, Nils

N1 - Keywords: Breast Neoplasms; Female; Humans; Prognosis; Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-1; Tumor Markers, Biological

PY - 2008

Y1 - 2008

N2 - Improvement of the management of breast cancer patients has high priority. In this regard, prognostic stratification needs to be improved in order to ensure proper medical treatment of all patients and furthermore predictors of response to chemotherapy are urgently needed. As new treatment opportunities emerge in the future this need will continue to grow. Thus, the search for molecular markers of prognosis and prediction is ongoing. Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinases-1 (TIMP-1) has been suggested as a marker of both prognosis and response to treatment. Several studies have demonstrated the association between TIMP-1 and prognosis in breast cancer and new studies within this area have focused on the possibility of using blood samples or paraffin embedded tissue instead of tumor tissue extracts for measurements of TIMP-1. Interestingly, recent studies have investigated the association between TIMP-1 and response to treatment showing that TIMP-1 may also carry predictive information on response to treatment. In this regard, results from studies of the molecular functions of TIMP-1 point to a role of TIMP-1 in the inhibition of tumor cell apoptosis as an explanation for the clinical findings. This review gives an update on the ongoing investigation of the potential role of TIMP-1 as a tumor marker in breast cancer. Furthermore, we link the clinical findings with studies of the molecular actions of the TIMP-1 protein, raising hypotheses that may explain why TIMP-1 could play an important role in future management of breast cancer patients.

AB - Improvement of the management of breast cancer patients has high priority. In this regard, prognostic stratification needs to be improved in order to ensure proper medical treatment of all patients and furthermore predictors of response to chemotherapy are urgently needed. As new treatment opportunities emerge in the future this need will continue to grow. Thus, the search for molecular markers of prognosis and prediction is ongoing. Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinases-1 (TIMP-1) has been suggested as a marker of both prognosis and response to treatment. Several studies have demonstrated the association between TIMP-1 and prognosis in breast cancer and new studies within this area have focused on the possibility of using blood samples or paraffin embedded tissue instead of tumor tissue extracts for measurements of TIMP-1. Interestingly, recent studies have investigated the association between TIMP-1 and response to treatment showing that TIMP-1 may also carry predictive information on response to treatment. In this regard, results from studies of the molecular functions of TIMP-1 point to a role of TIMP-1 in the inhibition of tumor cell apoptosis as an explanation for the clinical findings. This review gives an update on the ongoing investigation of the potential role of TIMP-1 as a tumor marker in breast cancer. Furthermore, we link the clinical findings with studies of the molecular actions of the TIMP-1 protein, raising hypotheses that may explain why TIMP-1 could play an important role in future management of breast cancer patients.

U2 - 10.1080/02841860802022976

DO - 10.1080/02841860802022976

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 18465326

SN - 1100-1704

VL - 47

SP - 580

EP - 590

JO - Acta Oncologica, Supplement

JF - Acta Oncologica, Supplement

IS - 4

ER -