Meeting report: Proteases, extracellular matrix, and cancer: an AACR Special Conference in Cancer Research.

Journal article

In summary, this conference succeeded in bringing together researchers from different disciplines with a common research interest focused on the study of tumor cells and their matrix environment. At the end of this conference, it became apparent that much effort is needed to achieve a better understanding of the complex and dynamic interactions between tumor cells, proteases, and ECM proteins. The ECM and proteases remain an attractive therapeutic target for cancer treatment and control, but to perform clinical trials in this field will require a deeper knowledge of their mechanisms of action, the availability of end points to monitor the activity of target-based cytostatic agents, and the opportunity to test their activity in earlier stages of cancer progression.

Authors: Wall, S; Jiang, Y; Muschel, R; DeClerck, Y

• Journal: Cancer research
• Volume: 63
• Issue: 15
• Pages: 4750-4755
• Publication date: 2003-08-01
• EISSN: 1538-7445
• ISSN: 0008-5472
• Language: English
• Keywords: Neoplasms; Extracellular Matrix; Humans; Animals; Endopeptidases