title: Serum soluble interleukin-2 receptor alpha levels in patients with gynecologic cancers: early effect of surgery.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: Immunology Program, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, University of S. Florida College of Medicine, Tampa.
authors.forename: D P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Barton
authors.forename: D K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Blanchard
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Michelini-Norris
authors.forename: W S
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Hoffman
authors.forename: J V
authors.initials: JV
authors.lastname: Fiorica
authors.forename: S V
authors.initials: SV
authors.lastname: Nicosia
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cavanagh
authors.forename: J Y
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Djeu
mesh_terms: D001774:Blood Chemical Analysis; D005260:Female; D005833:Genital Neoplasms, Female / Q000276:immunology* / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2 / Q000378:metabolism*; D012995:Solubility
chemical_list: D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2