Transition from suspension to adherent growth is accompanied by tissue factor expression and matrix metalloproteinase secretion in a small cell lung cancer cell line.

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a very malignant tumor known to grow aggressively and to metastasize early. It is well established that metastasis generally involves both tumor cell adhesion and proteolytic degradation of the extracellular matrix. However, SCLC cells cultured in vitro, such as the classic SCLC cell line NCI-H69, grow in floating aggregates and express only negligible proteolytic activity.