Cytokines and growth factors expressed by human cutaneous melanoma

Elias G Elias; Joanne H Hasskamp; Bhuvnesh K Sharma

doi:10.3390/cancers2020794

Cytokines and growth factors expressed by human cutaneous melanoma

Cancers (Basel). 2010 May 7;2(2):794-808. doi: 10.3390/cancers2020794.

Authors

Elias G Elias¹, Joanne H Hasskamp, Bhuvnesh K Sharma

Affiliation

¹ Maryland Melanoma Center, Weinberg Cancer Institute, Franklin Square Hospital Center, Baltimore, MD, USA. george.elias@medstar.net.

Abstract

Cytokines and growth factors have biologic effects that could stimulate tumor growth, invasion and angiogenesis. The incidence of 24 factors was investigated in 25 cultured human melanoma cell lines and in 62 fixed tissues at different stages of the disease. Over 80% of the human melanoma cell lines expressed TGF-β, IL-8, IL-6, VEGF, PDGF-AA and OPN. Significantly higher TGF-β, IGF-1 and IL-15 were determined in primary lesions compared to distant metastases by immunohistochemistry. Illustrating the complexity of the milieu of the tumor microenvironment, some of these factors may have to be considered in targeted therapy.