Evaluation of the Pro Inflammatory Cytokine Profile in Patients with Early Onset Gastric Cancer Under 40 Years of Age

• Vijay Shankar Yadav

  Kalinga University, Naya Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India

• Alok Kumar Yadav

  Kalinga University, Naya Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India

Background: Early-onset gastric cancer (EOGC) is gastric cancer diagnosed in patients aged below 40 years; EOGC is increasing in frequency, although the immune profile of EOGC is not well studied. Although a major part of gastric carcinogenesis is attributed to chronic inflammation that is frequently due to Helicobacter pylori, the cytokine profiles in the young gastric cancer patients have not been clearly defined.

Purpose: The paper will focus on the assessment of the serum pro-inflammatory cytokine profile in EOGC patients and discuss how this parameter is associated with clinicopathological characteristics (tumor stage, grade, and metastasis).

Methods: The retrospective observational study design was applied to 50 EOGC patients and 50 healthy age-matched controls. Blood samples were collected, and cytokine levels (IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-alpha, IFN- gamma, and IL-18) were determined by ELISA and multiplex bead-based assays. The levels of cytokines were compared in the two groups, and the correlations of the levels with clinical and pathological features were examined. The diagnostic potential of cytokines was investigated using ROC analysis.

Findings: The patients of EOGC had a great amount of serum cytokines compared to the healthy controls. There was also a significant increase in IL-6 and IL-1β, which was linked to advanced stages of tumor and metastasis. The ROC analysis revealed that the diagnostic performance of IL-6 and IL-1β was high, with the AUC of 0.85 and 0.82, respectively.

Conclusion: Patients with EOGC exhibit a distinctive pro-inflammatory cytokine profile, which suggests that inflammation plays a part in the disease's development. High cytokines like IL-6 and IL-1β can be used as potential biomarkers of early diagnosis and prognosis. These findings should be confirmed with further studies to investigate the therapeutic approach to address the inflammatory pathways in the management of EOGC.

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