MMPs as prognostic markers
Surgical removal of the tumor is the standard treatment pro-
cedure for most cancer types. Usually, surgery is followed by
adjuvant therapy like radiation, chemotherapy, hormones, an-
giogenic inhibitors, or kinase inhibitors. All these treatment
procedures may cause harmful side effects, and some patients
may be over-treated because of failure to identify those with
low risk of cancer recurrence. Other patients could benefit
from more aggressive treatment. During the last decade, new
biomarkers which can predict the chance of relapse have been
identified and are helpful in treatment stratification.
An overwhelming number of studies have addressed the
potential of MMPs and their tissue inhibitors, TIMPS, as
prognostic markers in different cancer types.