The mechanism of gastric cancer development and its etiology has not been completely elucidated so far. Macrophage Metalloelastase (HME) plays an important role in tumor growth, infiltration and metastasis. The aim of the present study was to investigate the expression of HME mRNA and protein in both gastric cancer cell lines and tumor specimens and evaluate its role in the development of gastric cancer, and its correlation with patient prognosis. Using Real-time PCR, Western Blot and Immunohistochemistry, we detected the HME mRNA and protein expression in gastric cancer cell lines and specimens, and further analyzed the association between HME expression and clinical data. The results showed that both HME mRNA and protein expression were found in all three gastric cancer cell lines. The expression of HME mRNA and protein in gastric cancer specimens was increased significantly compared with that in normal tissues (P<0.05). Meanwhile, the rate of lymph node metastasis of HME mRNA positive cases was lower than in HME negative ones (P<0.05); two-year survival rate in HME mRNA positive cases was higher than in HME negative ones (P<0.05). HME may be a novel gastric tumor biomarker and its expression in gastric cancers may be related with lower metastatization rates with conseguent better prognosis.