In subsequent stages, elevated levels of heparanase induced acquisition of procancerous phenotype by tumor-associated macrophages, resulting in activation of tumor-promoting signaling and acceleration of breast tumor growth under obese conditions.
Moreover, analyzing clinical data from diabetic breast carcinoma patients, we found that concurrent presence of both diabetic state and heparanase in tumor tissue (as opposed to either condition alone) was associated with more aggressive phenotype of breast tumors in the patient cohort analyzed in our study (two-sided Fisher's exact test; p=0.04).
Statistical analysis revealed that HPR1 expression was associated with breast tumor metastases (P =.04) and primary tumors between 1 and 5 cm (P =.002).