HO-1 action may be of great importance in solid tumors, an environment that fosters hypoxia, oxidative stress, and neovascularization. HO-1 may have both pro-and antagonistic effects on tumor growth and survival. HO-1 and CO cause growth arrest in cell-culture systems and thus may represent a potential therapeutic modality in modulating tumor growth [16] . The overexpression of HO-1 or administration of CO in mesothelioma and adenocarcinoma mouse models resulted in improved survival (>90%) as well as reduction in tumor size (>50%) [17] . Furthermore, HO-1 expression in oral squamous cell carcinomas can be useful in identifying patients at low risk of lymph node metastasis. High expression of HO-1 was detected in groups without lymph node metastasis in this report [102] . In contrast to growth arrest, HO-1 may protect solid tumors from oxidative stress and hypoxia, possibly by promoting neovascularization. In one study, zinc protoporphyrin, a competitive inhibitor of HO-1 enzyme activity, suppressed tumor growth [103] .