Abstract
This report presents the state of current knowledge regarding the importance of basement membrane (BM) for the growth of benign and malignant tumours with special emphasis on tumours of the head and neck. The BM forms a barrier that has to be destroyed by infiltrative tumour cells. Recent immunohistochemical analyses have revealed both quantitative and qualitative changes in the BM composition following malignant transformation of the epithelial cells, thereby allowing malignant ingrowth into the stroma. This BM pattern, however, may also allow an early diagnosis of tumour invasion. Additionally, carcinomas of the larynx demonstrate a correlation between the amount of preserved BM deposition and the grade of tumour differentiation. This fact may also be important in tumour prognosis.
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