Integrity of the E-cadherin complex in metastatic adenocarcinomas of the lung

Lung cancer is one of the leading causes for tumor related death. Especially the metastatic spread represents a major progression in tumor development and is correlated with worse prognosis. Metastasis is a multiple step process including the dissemination of tumor cells from the original tumor, its migration and survival to distant locations in the body, where they form secondary tumors. Dissemination of cells from the original tumor is closely associated with a loss or reduction of intercellular adhesions between neighboring tumor cells. The most important cell-cell adhesion modules of epithelial cells are the…