title: Evaluation of cathepsin D as a prognostic factor in breast cancer.
abstract: The biologic rationale for the importance of cathepsin D in breast cancer is a provocative one. Cathepsin D is both an estrogen inducible and a constitutively produced protease, which may also act directly as a peptide growth factor. Thus it may play a role in tumor invasiveness, and also in driving cell proliferation. Reported clinical studies are conflicting, with some studies showing cathepsin D levels to correlate with clinical outcome, and other studies finding prognostic significance only in selected subsets of patients, if any. Thus cathepsin D is a potentially important prognostic marker whose clinical application awaits further definition.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio 78284-7884.
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Ravdin
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000401:mortality; D002402:Cathepsin D / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D002402:Cathepsin D