Abstract:

Objective To explore the levels of peripheral blood cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) in patients with esophageal cancer with relation to radiation-induced lung injury (RILI). Methods Retrospective analysis was performed in 97 patients with esophageal cancer who had been admitted to our hospital from March 2018 to March 2020. According to whether RILI developed after the treatment, the patients were divided into RILI group(n=25) and non-RILI group(n=72). The peripheral blood IL-6, VEGF, TNF-α, and the level of TGF-β for patients in two groups were determined before and after the radiotherapy. The correlation between various indexes and RILI development was analyzed, and diagnostic efficiency was evaluated. Results IL-6, VEGF, TNF-α, and TGF-β in RILI group were increased, and all the indexes except VEGF in non-RILI group were decreased after the radiotherapy(P<0.05). Whether the patients developed RILI had significant correlation with the levels of peripheral blood IL-6, VEGF, TNF-α, and TGF-β (r=-0.564, r=-0.266, r=-0.758, and r=-0.583)(P<0.05). ROC results showed that the AUC of IL-6, VEGF, TNF-α, and TGF-β were successively 0.837, 0.645, 0.989, and 0.884. In addition, their sensitivity and the specificity were 68.0% and 91.7%, 88.0% and 47.2%, 100.0% and 90.3%, and 92.0% and 77.8%, respectively. Conclusion The levels of peripheral blood IL-6, VEGF, TNF-α, and TGF-β in patients with esophageal cancer are significantly correlated with RILI development after the radiotherapy, and they can be used as factors to predict RILI development.

Key words: esophageal neoplasms, cytokines, radiotherapy