MMP2 and adenocarcinoma: This evidence is consistent with previous observations on gastrointestinal malignancy demonstrating that the overexpression of MMP-2 is related to the conversion from premalignant conditions to a malignant phenotype, whereas MMP-9 is overexpressed in premalignant polyps [34,35], suggesting that the latter is expressed in the early stage during the adenocarcinoma malignant transformation.