Serum soluble interleukin-2 receptor alpha levels in patients with gynecologic cancers: early effect of surgery.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the early effect of abdominal cytoreductive surgery on serum soluble interleukin-2 receptor alpha (sIL-2R alpha) levels in patients with ovarian and cervical cancer, and to determine if the extent of cytoreduction correlated with the changes in serum sIL-2R alpha.


METHODS
Thirty-nine patients with gynecologic cancer had serum sIL-2R alpha measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay before abdominal cytoreductive surgery and once in the early postoperative period.


RESULTS
Only patients with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer had elevated preoperative serum sIL-2R alpha levels. In 20 of 25 ovarian cancer cases (80%) and 10 of 14 cervical cancer cases (71.4%) the postoperative serum sIL-2R alpha levels exceeded the preoperative level (P = .003 and P = .011, respectively). Overall, the mean postoperative serum sIL-2R alpha level was greater than the preoperative level (P = .0001).


CONCLUSIONS
Patients with early stage gynecologic cancer did not have elevated serum sIL-2R alpha levels before surgery. In the early postoperative period the serum sIL-2R alpha level was increased, which may be a nonspecific response to the trauma of surgery. Soluble IL-2R alpha may be one of the factors responsible for the immunosuppression in the early postoperative period, but may also herald a surge of activated T cells.
Barton
D P
DP
Immunology Program, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, University of S. Florida College of Medicine, Tampa.
Blanchard
D K
DK
Michelini-Norris
B
B
Roberts
W S
WS
Hoffman
M S
MS
Fiorica
J V
JV
Nicosia
S V
SV
Cavanagh
D
D
Djeu
J Y
JY
D001774:Blood Chemical Analysis; D005260:Female; D005833:Genital Neoplasms, Female / Q000276:immunology* / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2 / Q000378:metabolism*; D012995:Solubility
D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2