The expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-2 in patients with primary colorectal adenocarcinoma: correlation with liver metastasis.

The expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-2 was examined immunohistochemically in a total of 36 colorectal cancer patients with synchronous liver metastasis at the time of surgery, and the serum MMP-2 and TIMP-2 levels were also measured in a total of 58 colorectal cancer patients with/without liver metastasis following primary colorectal surgical resection for serological comparison. Although MMP-2 exhibited a significant expression immunohistochemically in the primary colorectal cancer (p<0.05) and TIMP-2 in the synchronous liver metastasis (p<0.01), there was no relationship between the absence/presence of liver metastasis and serum MMP-2 and TIMP-2 levels, respectively. These results suggest that it can be considered difficult to use serum MMP-2 and TIMP-2 levels to predict the status of liver metastasis following primary resection in patients with colorectal adenocarcinoma.