Determining cancer aggressiveness

An article of manufacture comprising an oligonucleotide primer pair that specifically amplifies all or a portion of a target region of a TIEG nucleic acid, wherein said target region is defined by nucleotides 1-500 of the 5′ portion of said TIEG nucleic acid.

An article of manufacture comprising a first and a second oligonucleotide primer pair, wherein said first primer pair amplifies a first target nucleic acid and said second primer pair amplifies a second target nucleic acid in an amplification reaction, and wherein said first and second target nucleic acids are TIEG marker-related nucleic acids.

An antibody having specific binding affinity for a TIEG polypeptide.

A method of assisting a person in determining the aggressiveness of a cancer in a mammal, wherein said method comprises:

• a) determining the presence or absence of a TIEG marker in a sample from said mammal;
• and,
• b) communicating information about said presence or absence of said marker in said sample to said person.

A method for determining the prognosis of a mammal having a cancer, said method comprising determining, in a test sample from said mammal, the presence or absence of a TIEG marker and correlating said presence or absence with said prognosis.

A method for diagnosing cancer in a mammal, said method comprising determining, in a test sample from said mammal, the presence or absence of a TIEG marker and correlating said presence or absence with said diagnosis.

A method for determining the aggressiveness of a cancer in a mammal, said method comprising determining, in a test sample from said mammal, the level of a TIEG biomolecule and the level of a biomolecule regulated by TIEG, and correlating said levels with said aggressiveness.