Review paper
The role of growth factors in pathogenesis of pancreatic cancer. Part I: Epidermal growth factor receptors (EGFR) and heparin-binding EGF-like growth factor (HB-EGF)

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) family consists of a group of transmembrane proteins with an intrinsic tyrosine kinase activity. It consists of 4 members: EGFR/ErbB-1, HER2/ErbB-2, HER3/ErbB-3 and HER4/ErbB-4. Overexpression of EGFR is observed in pancreatic cancer cells in over 40% of specimens from surgically excised tumours. In patients with overexpressed EGFR, liver metastases and local recurrence are more frequently observed. A correlation between expression of EGFR and grading and staging is observed. In experimental studies the overexpression of HER2/neu protein in cells triggers proliferation and is connected with neoplasmatic transformation and metastases. Experimental studies of the usefulness of HER2/neu measurements in clinical practice give inconsistent results. It was shown that overexpression of c-erbB-3 in pancreatic cancer is connected with poor prognosis. Heparin-binding EGF-like growth factor can play a role in auto- and paracrine activation of EGFR, contributing to proliferation of pancreatic cancer cells.