@article{3139023,
    title = "Circulating lymphangiogenic growth factors in gastrointestinal solid
tumors, could they be of any clinical significance?",
    author = "Tsirlis, Theodore D. and Papastratis, George and Masselou, Kyriaki and and Tsigris, Christos and Papachristocloulou, Antonis and Kostakis, and Alkiviadis and Nikiteas, Nikolaos I.",
    journal = "World Journal of Gastroenterology",
    year = "2008",
    volume = "14",
    number = "17",
    pages = "2691-2701",
    publisher = "BAISHIDENG PUBLISHING GROUP INC",
    issn = "1007-9327",
    doi = "10.3748/wjg.14.2691",
    keywords = "circulating VEGF-C and VEGF-D; gastric; oesophageal; colorectal cancer;
preoperative staging; lymph node metastasis predictive markers",
    abstract = "Metastasis is the principal cause of cancer mortality, with the
lymphatic system being the first route of tumor dissemination. The
glycoproteins VEGF-C and VEGF-D are members of the vascular endothelial
growth factor (VEGF) family, whose role has been recently recognized as
lymphatic system regulators during embryogenesis and in pathological
processes such as inflammation, lymphatic system disorders and malignant
tumor metastasis. They are ligands for the VEGFR-3 receptor on the
membrane of the lymphatic endothelial cell, resulting in dilatation of
existing lymphatic vessels as well as in vegetation of new ones
(lymphangiogenesis). Their determination is feasible in the circulating
blood by immunoabsorption and in the tissue specimen by
immunohistochemistry and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction
(RT-PCR). Experimental and clinicopathological studies have linked the
VEGF-C, VEGF-D/VEGFR3 axis to lymphatic spread as well as to the
clinical outcome in several human solid tumors. The majority of these
data are derived from surgical specimens and malignant cell series,
rendering their clinical application questionable, due to subjectivity
factors and post-treatment quantification. In an effort to overcome
these drawbacks, an alternative method of immunodetection of the
circulating levels of these molecules has been used in studies on
gastric, esophageal and colorectal cancer. Their results denote that
quantification of VEGF-C and VEGF-D in blood samples could serve as
lymph node metastasis predictive biomarkers and contribute to
preoperative staging of gastrointestinal malignancies. (C) 2008 WJG. All
rights reserved."
}