CXCL1, CXCL2 and CXCL8 are of particular interest because the upregulation of CXCL1 and CXCL8 has been associated with poor survival in patients with ovarian cancer.20, 21 CXCL1 and CXCL2 are 90% identical in their amino-acid sequences.22 Quantitative RT–PCR analyses showed that the mRNA levels of CXCL1, CXCL2 and CXCL8 were also significantly increased in GAB2-overexpressing FTSECs compared with control vector-expressing cells (Figure 2b). This evidence concerns the gene CXCL1 and ovarian carcinoma.