Objective:To evaluate the inhibitory effect of somatostatin analogue RC-160 on the growth of human endometrial cancer cells (HEC-1A) in vitro. Method: RT-PCR was used to examine the existence of somatostatin receptors on the HEC-1A cells. The anti-proliferative effect of RC-160 on the growth of HEC-1A cells was detected by using BrdU incorporation test. TUNEL staining was used to find out whether apoptosis was involved in the inhibitory process. Result: All the five somatostatin receptor subtypes were demonstrated in HEC-1A cells. RC-160 reduced the HEC-1A cell growth stimulated by serum in a dose-dependent manner. The effect was maximal at the concentration of 10-5M after 48 hours' treatment. No apoptosis was detected. Conclusion:Somatostatin analogue RC-160 can inhibit the proliferation of endometrial carcinoma cell line HEC-1A through binding to the somatostatin receptors on the cells. It seems that apoptosis is not mainly responsible for the inhibition.