Contemporary oncology deals very efficiently with localized and even infiltrating malignancy and many combination protocols are successful, for a time; but it is the distant metastases that are finally the cause of morbidity and fatal outcome in breast cancer. If it were possible to predict with some degree of certainty the metastatic potential in individual patients and their tumors, the selection of optimal treatment could be much more effective. At least in some cases, patients could avoid unnecessary discomfort and suffering, while in others, aggressive and timely treatment might be of benefit. So far, ?markers? for a metastatic cancer cell phenotype have not fulfilled the demand for a reliable selection criterion; it appears that whole battery of such tests will be needed and E-Cadherin may be one of the promising candidates.
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