Studies using human breast cancer tissue samples demonstrated that CCN6 messenger RNA and protein are expressed in normal breast epithelia but reduced or lost in aggressive breast cancer phenotypes, especially inflammatory breast cancer and metaplastic carcinomas.
Two genes, Rhoc GTPase and WISP3, have been identified that have been found to be concordantly altered in the majority of inflammatory breast cancer tumors and may serve as potential targets for future therapeutic agents.
The cysteine-rich protein CCN6 [or Wnt-1-induced signaling protein 3 (WISP3)] exerts tumor-suppressive effects in aggressive inflammatory breast cancer.
Recent IBC research has examined two genes, RhoC GTPase and WISP3, which are concordantly altered in the majority of IBC tumors but not in non-IBC specimens.