Hormonal modulation of GM-CSF receptor alpha-chain in in vitro models of endometrial cancer

Granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is a cytokine that stimulates the proliferation and differentiation of bone marrow progenitors. Moreover, the presence and activity of GM-CSF and its receptor (GM-CSF-r) has been documented on tissues and cell lines of a non-hemopoietic origin. In this paper we studied the expression and putative role of GM-CSF and GM-CSF-r in endometrial cancer. The modulation of GM-CSF-r alpha-chain upon progesterone treatment suggests a role for GM-CSF and its receptor in the pathogenesis and development of endometrial cancer.