The IGF-1 receptor (IGF-1-R) belongs to the tyrosine kinase growth factor receptor family. It is structurally similar to, but distinct from, the insulin receptor, with which it shares a 70% homology. As expected, it crossreacts with insulin and, vice versa, insulin receptor crossreacts with IGF-1. Numerous studies suggest that IGF-1-R is very important for mitogenesis and is essential for phenotype transformation, at least in rodents (1). In particular, the IGF-1-R has been described in human breast cancer (2-4) and ovarian cancer (5) tissues and in cultured human breast cancer cell lines (6,7).
