CD44 and neoplasm: Interestingly, in grade 1 invasive ductal carcinoma patients, more than 50% of tumor samples stain positive for CD44 variant exons v3, v5-v7 and v9 (CD44v3, CD44v5, CD44v6, CD44v7 and CD44v9), highlighting their potential as therapeutic targets for early grade ductal carcinoma (Bànkfalvi et al., 1998).