Urokinase expression in course of benign and malignant mammary lesions: comparison between nodular and healthy tissues

Purpose: Increased expression of urokinase (uPA), a member of the serine protease family, is an effector of metastatic cascade and has been reported in various malignancies, including breast cancer. uPA overexpression in cancer tissues was correlated with a more aggressive phenotype and it is considered a strong and independent unfavorable prognostic factor in breast cancer. Methods: Using real-time PCR assay, we analyzed uPA expression of malignant and benign breast nodular lesions versus healthy tissues (normal breast and lymphocytes). Results: We found that besides breast cancer nodule, normal mammary gland and lymphocytes overexpressed uPA too. Tissues obtained from women with benign lesions expressed homogeneous and lower uPA. Conclusions: In conclusion, although uPA overexpression is typical of cancer tissues, it could be considered as a feature of the whole organism affected by cancer. On the basis of these first results, uPA could be considered for further studies as a possible useful therapeutic target in breast cancer. © 2009 Springer-Verlag.