Correlatin between PET scan and cytokine in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)

Background : Systemic and local inflammatory microenvironment may be an important contributor to morbidity and mortality associated with NSCLC. Exhaled breath condensate(EBC) is a non-invasive method to collect airway lining fluid for assessing lung inflammation. Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is associated with poor prognosis and correlates with neoplastic cachexia and with stage of disease. PET scan has been included in standard staging workup and the standardized uptake value(SUV) of PET-scan has been shown to correlate with poor prognosis in lung cancer. Aim and Objective : to assess the correlations between serum and EBC IL-6 levels and SUV in patients with NSCLC. Methods : Fifteen consecutive patients (12 males, mean age 64 years, range 39-82) receiving a curative resection for NSCLC were enrolled. All the patients underwent PET scan and IL-6 values measurement both in serum and EBC. Results : PET scan was positive in all the patients with a mean SUV value 10.64 ± 4.28(range: 6-18.8). Mean IL-6 value was 1.05 pg/ml ± 1.27 in serum and 0.29 pg/ml ± 0.09 in EBC. Significant correlation between SUV and IL-6 levels both in serum and in EBC was found (r= p Conclusions : the observed relationship suggest that lung and systemic inflammation is proportional to tumor metabolic activity.