title: The Diagnostic and Prognostic Value of sIL-2R as an Immune Biomarker in Head and Neck Cancers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Head and neck cancer (HNC) patients are usually diagnosed with advanced disease and multimodality therapies are required, as well as prognostic biomarkers to predict their response and assess survival. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the ability and clinical significance of the immune biomarker sIL-2R in HNC patients, to assess therapy response and prognosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  We evaluated 328 blood samples from 145 head and neck cancer patients (HNC) from several subgroups: 84 larynx carcinomas pre- and 39 post-therapy, 46 oral cavity carcinomas pre- and 29 post-therapy, 12 nasopharynx carcinomas, 16 parotid and other salivary gland carcinoma patients. The control group included 45 healthy subjects. Serum sIL-2R levels were evaluated by ELISA assays and correlated to disease stage, lymph nodes, response to therapy, survival and cancer differentiation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significantly higher sIL-2R levels were recorded in all HNC patients, as opposed to controls, in advanced versus early-stage disease that decreased following therapy. sIL-2R distinguished best, in comparison to other tumor markers, between HNC patients and controls. Survival was strongly associated to lower sIL-2R levels in patients entering the study.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  sIL-2R is a sensitive immune marker for HNC patients. Its levels correlate to disease stage, assess response to therapy and are predictive of recurrence or better survival. We suggest, therefore, using sIL-2R as a reliable prognostic marker in HNC patients as a single marker, or in a combined panel of biomarkers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Hadassah - Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Menachem
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gross
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, Hadassah - Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Amichay
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Meirovich
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Hadassah - Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Jakob
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rachmut
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, Hadassah - Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Ina
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kalichman
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, Hadassah - Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Tamar
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Peretz
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Hadassah - Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Ron
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Eliashar
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, Hadassah - Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel barakvivi@hadassah.org.il barakvivi@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Vivian
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Barak
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood*; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D007822:Laryngeal Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D009055:Mouth / Q000473:pathology; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D011379:Prognosis; D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2 / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D015375:Receptors, Interleukin-2
keywords: Head and neck cancer; clinical utility; sIL-2R; tumor markers