Clinical and Prognostic Biomarker Value of Blood Circulating Inflammatory Cytokines in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Circulating inflammatory cytokines play critical roles in tumor-associated inflammation and immune responses. Recent data has suggested that several interleukins (ILs) mediate carcinogenesis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the predictive and prognostic value of circulating ILs has yet to be validated. Our study aimed to evaluate the association of the serum ILs with overall survival (OS) and clinicopathologic features in a large cohort of HCC patients. We prospectively collected data, and serum samples from 767 HCC patients treated at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center between 2001 and 2014, with a median follow-up of 67.4 months (95% CI: 52.5, 83.3). Biomarker association with overall survival (OS) was evaluated by the Log-rank method. The median OS in this cohort was 14.2 months (95% confidence interval [CI]: 12, 16.1 months). Clinicopathologic features were more advanced, and OS was significantly inferior in patients with high circulating levels of IL1-R1, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-15, IL-16, and IL-18. In conclusion, our study shows that several serum IL levels are valid prognostic biomarker candidates and potential targets for therapy in HCC.