The matrix metalloproteinase in oral and oropharyngeol cancer â literature review

Abstract

The most common head and neck cancers are neoplasms that occur in the oral cavity and the throat. They are characterized by the high growth rate and clinical malignancy. The research on a significant role in the tumorigenesis of the matrix metalloproteinases MMP-2, MMP-8, MMP- 9 and their tissue inhibitors is becoming more and more popular nowadays. MMPs are a group of proteolytic enzymes responsible for the stroma extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation, which enables the tumor growth, cell migration, and tumor invasion. The numerous studies reveal a significant growing trend in the level of the studied metalloproteinases expression and their inhibitors in the oral cavity and throat cancers in relation to healthy tissues. Moreover, it was proved that an increased gene MMP-2 expression in the tumor tissue correlates with the clinical staging, the histopathological grading, presence of metastases, cancer relapse, and the patientâs survival time. In available articles there is evidence of increased gene MMP-2 expression as a potential marker of the tumor invasiveness and the worse prognosis in patients with the oral cavity and throat cancers. The relationships of the gene MMP-9 expression with the clinical and pathological features as well as with the survival time are inconclusive. A similar relationship is found in case of TIMPs, however this issue has not been commonly raised in the scientific literature.