As assessed by a zymographic analysis of THP-1 supernatants and by an “in-gel zymography” of a pool of sera from patients with breast cancer, the antioxidant compounds used in this study inhibited both the activity and expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 through different mechanisms related to their structures and to their ability to scavenge ROS. The gene discussed is MMP9; the disease is breast cancer.