This phenomenon could in part be mediated by the fact that osteoblasts express SDF-1 and RANKL, two cytokines that favor breast cancer cell dissemination and ultimately tumor growth through binding to their cognate receptors (CXCR4 and receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B (RANK), respectively) on the cancer cells (26, 30). This evidence concerns the gene CXCL12 and cancer.