Expression and clinical significance of serum interleukin-6 in triple negative breast cancer

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the expression and clinical significance of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). Methods One hundred and fifty-six cases including 52 cases of TNBC, 79 cases of non-triple negative breast and 25 cases of benign breast disease. Serum IL-6 level was detected by using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The difference of IL-6 level in the three groups was analyzed. The correlation between serum IL-6 level and clinicopathological parameters of TNBC including age, menopause status, tumor size, lymph node metastasis and TNM stage was examined. Results The serum IL-6 level in groups of benign breast disease, non-triple negative breast cancer and TNBC was (13.3±4.7), (79.9±19.5), (114.2±21.9) pg/ml respectively. The difference between the three groups differed significantly (P=0.000). The level of serum IL-6 in TNBC with tumor size>2 cm and lymph node metastasis was higher than that with tumor size≤2 cm and no lymph node metastasis, and the difference differed significantly (P=0.000, 0.020). Conclusion IL-6 level was highly in the serum of TNBC and it maybe a diagnosis marker and therapeutic target. Key words: Interleukin-6; Triple negative breast cancer; Serum