Laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer is not associated with an increase in the circulating levels of several inflammation-related factors.

It has been hypothesized that inflammatory response triggered by surgery might induce the release of molecules that could promote proliferation, invasion and metastasis of surviving cancer cells. To test this hypothesis, the levels of multiple inflammation-related circulating factors were analyzed in patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer. A Luminex xMAP system was used to simultaneously assess levels of IL-1β, IL-1ra, IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-9, IL-10, IL-12, IL-13, IL-15, IL-17, FGF, eotaxin, G-CSF, GM-CSF, IFN-γ, IP-10, MCP-1, MIP-1α, MIP-1β, PDGF-BB, RANTES, TNF-α and VEGF in 20 colorectal cancer patients and 10 age-matched non-neoplastic patients. In cancer patients analyses were performed at baseline (before surgery) and at different time points (up to 30 days) following laparoscopic surgery. Significantly higher levels of IL-1β, IL-7, IL-8, G-CSF, IFN-γ and TNF-α were detected in colorectal cancer patients compared to controls at baseline. In colorectal cancer patients, circulating levels decreased progressively following surgery and after day 30 post-surgery were no longer different from controls. These findings suggest that expression levels of several cytokines are higher in colorectal cancer patients compared to control subjects and no significant increase in several inflammation-related circulating factors is observed following laparoscopic surgery for cancer. Confirmation and validation in a different and larger cohort of patients are warranted.