Examination of heparanase gene mRNA expression by real-time RT-PCR indicated a significantly lower heparanase expression level in ALL patients and a higher expression level in MM and AML patients, compared to healthy controls.38 The findings were not verified in ALL patients from Northern Ireland.39 Ralph et al. reported on an association between a specific heparanase SNP and stage of ovarian cancer disease, while the association was not found in vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) SNPs.40 Further research is needed to explore the clinical relevance of heparanase polymorphism detection. The gene discussed is VEGFA; the disease is acute myeloid leukemia.