The Intercellular Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in Lung Cancer: Implications for Disease Progression and Prognosis

Δημιουργηθηκε στις Κυριακή, 07 Δεκεμβρίου 2014 11:47

Abstract. The intercellular cell-adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) is a transmembrane molecule and a distinguished member of the Immunoglobulin superfamily of proteins that participates in many important processes, including leukocyte endothelial transmigration, cell signaling, cell-cell interaction, cell polarity and tissue stability. ICAM-1and its soluble part are highly expressed in inflammatory conditions, chronic diseases and a number of malignancies. In the present article we present the implications of ICAM-1 in the progression and prognosis of one of the major global killers of our era: lung cancer.

Lung cancer, despite all therapeutic efforts, remains the leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide, with approximately 160,340 deaths in the United States in 2012 (1). Its high mortality is largely attributed to early local expansion and metastasis, as most patients present with locally advanced or metastatic (up to 75%) disease at the time of diagnosis (2, 3), while in a large percentage of the remaining patients, early stage disease rapidly progresses to metastatic. Since early-diagnosis provides the only chance for a potentially curative treatment, several studies have focused on the identification of serum biomarkers who could be used as diagnostic, staging, prognostic or predictive markers in lung cancer. Adhesion molecules have been the subject of many of these studies.

Correspondence to: Konstantinos N. Syrigos, MD, Ph.D., Oncology Unit GPP, Sotiria General Hospital, Athens School of Medicine, 152 Mesogion Avenue, 115 27 Athens, Greece.

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