Expression of CSF-1 and its receptor CSF-1R in non-hematopoietic neoplasms.

CSF-1 and its receptor appear to be important in the physiology of several different neoplasms including those of the breast and female reproductive tract. Levels of CSF-1 and CSF-1R expression appear to correlate with tumor cell invasiveness and an adverse clinical prognosis and may be modulated by hormones involved in normal lactogenic differentiation. Also, it appears that CSF-1R activates several different signal transduction pathways but only some of these appear to have direct bearing on tumor cell phenotypes and the activation of pathways in specific cell types may depend on factors above and beyond the receptor itself.