Abstract
Autocrine expression of polypeptide growth factors may be important in the growth regulation of cancer cells. Different growth factor activities have been identified in a variety of tumors. This article describes a case of malignant ascites in a patient recently treated for breast cancer. The use of growth factor mRNA expression as a factor to differentiate between breast and ovarian origins of cancer cells contained in malignant ascites was examined. Expression of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), IGF-II, and transforming growth factor α mRNA was examined by ribonuclease protection assay. The tumor cells expressed IGF-II and transforming growth factor α, but not IGF- I mRNA. This pattern of growth factor expression is compatible with a breast cancer primary of the malignant cells contained in the ascites fluid. Therefore, IGF-I mRNA expression may be useful in distinguishing between adenocarcinomas of breast or ovarian origins.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 108-111 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | American Journal of the Medical Sciences |
| Volume | 307 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1994 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:From the Department of Medicine/Oncology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas. Supported by a grant to Douglas Yee, MD, (R29 CA 052592) and an NCI Cancer Center Support Grant to the Institute for Cancer Research and Care (P30 CA 54174). Douglas Yee is a Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences. Correspondence: Douglas Yee, MD, Department of Medicine/Oncology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78284-7884.
