De La Cruz-Vargas Jhony A, Gómez Henry, Talavera Jesus E, Gonzales-Rospigliosi Cristhian, Córdova Salazar Ariana Alessandra, Pichardo-Rodriguez Rafael
Institute of Biomedical Sciences Research, Ricardo Palma University, Lima 15039, Peru.
Medicina Oncológica, ONCOSALUD-AUNA, Lima 15036, Peru.
Curr Oncol. 2025 Jun 11;32(6):344. doi: 10.3390/curroncol32060344.
Although cytokines mediate inflammation and inflammation facilitates cancer progression, few studies have evaluated the association between specific cytokines and the prognostic value of breast cancer. Therefore, this study aims to address the following question: What is the prognostic relevance of serum IL-6 and TNF-alpha levels on overall survival and treatment response in women with breast cancer? A systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies was conducted. The databases consulted included PubMed/Medline, Web of Science, and EMBASE. A total of 1748 articles were identified, of which 10 were included in the review. A significant association was found between elevated levels of IL-6 and TNF-alpha with poor overall survival and poor treatment response. The meta-analysis showed an HR of 3.74 (95% CI: 1.84-7.6) for elevated IL-6 with high heterogeneity (I: 61%; = 0.07) and an HR of 3.13 (95% CI: 1.57-6.23) for TNF-alpha with low heterogeneity (I: 0%; = 0.9). The overall response rate was 75% (95% CI: 31-100%; I: 92%). In conclusion, IL-6 and TNF-alpha emerge as prognostic inflammatory biomarkers in women with breast cancer and are associated with poor survival and poor treatment response. This study highlights the need to establish an international consensus on cutoff points and standardized determination methods to implement these biomarkers in clinical practice.
尽管细胞因子介导炎症，且炎症促进癌症进展，但很少有研究评估特定细胞因子与乳腺癌预后价值之间的关联。因此，本研究旨在解决以下问题：血清白细胞介素-6（IL-6）和肿瘤坏死因子-α（TNF-α）水平对乳腺癌女性患者总生存期和治疗反应的预后相关性如何？我们对队列研究进行了系统评价和荟萃分析。所查阅的数据库包括PubMed/Medline、科学网和EMBASE。共识别出1748篇文章，其中10篇被纳入本综述。研究发现，IL-6和TNF-α水平升高与总生存期差和治疗反应差之间存在显著关联。荟萃分析显示，IL-6水平升高的风险比（HR）为3.74（95%置信区间：1.84 - 7.6），异质性高（I²：61%；P = 0.07）；TNF-α的HR为3.13（95%置信区间：1.57 - 6.23），异质性低（I²：0%；P = 0.9）。总体缓解率为75%（95%置信区间：31 - 100%；I²：92%）。总之，IL-6和TNF-α成为乳腺癌女性患者的预后炎症生物标志物，与生存期差和治疗反应差相关。本研究强调需要就临界值和标准化测定方法达成国际共识，以便在临床实践中应用这些生物标志物。
