APC Adenomatous polyposis coli ARID2 AT-rich interaction domain 2 ASI Acid secretion inhibitor ATM Adjacent tissue myofibroblast ATP Adenosine-5'-triphosphate BabA Blood group antigen binding adhesion BCC Basal cell cancer BCH Basal cell hyperplasia BD Boyden insert BMP Bone morphogenetic protein BRAF B-Raf proto-oncogene BSA Bovine serum albumin CAF Cancer-associated fibroblasts CagA Cytotoxin associated gene A CAM Cancer-associated myofibroblasts xviii cAMP Cyclic adenosine monophosphate CCK Cholecystokinin CCK2R/CCKB Cholecystokinin-2 /-B / gastrin receptor CCK2Ri4sv CCK2 receptor intron 4-containing splice variant CCK-8 / CeCo Cell counting Kit-8 CCK8 Cholecystokinin-8 CCL17 (22, 24) Chemokin (C-C motif) ligand 17 (22, 24) Cdc42 Cell division control protein 42 CDK Cyclin-dependent kinase CDKI2A cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor CDKN2A Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2A CgA Chromogranin A CM Conditioned media CMLR1 Chemokine like-receptor 1 CNS Central nervous system COX Cyclooxygenase CPE Carboxypeptidase E CRE cAMP response element CREB cAMP response element binging protein Ct Cycle threshold CTFP C-terminal flanking peptide CTLA-4 Cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen CuSO4 Copper sulphate CXCL12 C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 12 CXCR Chemokine receptor CXCR3 C-X-C Motif Chemokine Receptor 3 xxvii substitution of TIMP-3 reverted these changes. Serum MMP-2 and TIMP-3 concentration showed no correlation with disease progression. In conclusion the metastasising capacity of in situ melanomas may be significantly influenced by gastrin, and suggesting the need for closer surveillance in those patients with hypergastrinaemia. Moreover, CCK2R may provide a putative therapeutic target. Future research could usefully focus on these issues. Due to lack of experimental data the significance of infections in the origin of cancer was dismissed for almost half of a century. With the development of microbiology, the concept of tumour viruses and viral oncogenes were introduced in the early 20th century. Peyton Rous was amongst the first one to discover that avian sarcoma could be transmitted into healthy animals by a virus (later named Rous sarcoma virus (RSV)) generated from tumour extracts (Rous 1911). RSV was recognised later as the first identified tumour virus capable of inducing cancer. Intense research in this field led to the immunochemistry which identified scattered endocrine cells (G-cells) in the epithelium of the antral mucosa. Since the local concentration of former is 15-20 fold higher than the other, stimulatory effect of gastrin is mainly mediated through the amidated version containing 17 amino acid residues (Dockray et al. 1996). It should be noted however, that precursor forms have also been shown to have a proliferative effect on GI mucosa mainly observed with colonic cancers (Nemeth et al. 1993). * ** Figure 1.1. Schematic representation of gastrin synthesis. Preprogastrin is cleaved and converted to progastrin by SPC2,3 and CPE. After phosphorylation and sulphation, Gly extended gastrines (G34Gl...