TY - JOUR
T1 - Relationship between cytokines and symptoms in people with incurable cancer
T2 - A systematic review
AU - Patton, Rebekah
AU - Paval, D. Robert
AU - McDonald, James J.
AU - Brown, Duncan
AU - Gallagher, Iain J.
AU - Skipworth, Richard J. E.
AU - McMillan, Donald C.
AU - Dolan, Ross D.
AU - Fallon, Marie
AU - Laird, Barry J. A.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2021/3
Y1 - 2021/3
N2 - Background: Development and spread of cancer is linked to the inflammatory response, in which cytokines serve a key role. The inflammatory response may also form the basis for symptoms of cancer. This systematic review examines the relationship between cytokines and symptoms in incurable cancer.Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, Web of Science and PsycINFO databases were searched for studies from January 2004 to January 2020.Results: Twenty studies were selected (n = 1806 patients, 119 controls). Symptoms studied included depression, fatigue, pain, and loss of appetite. Nine studies examined patients with a specified tumour type, the remainder included patients with a mix of tumour types. Thirty-one cytokines were examined; multiple associations between cytokines and symptoms were described, supporting the hypothesis that cytokines may have a key role in symptom generation.Conclusion: Symptoms of incurable cancer are associated with circulating cytokines. Further study is required to characterise these relationships, and to explore their therapeutic potential.
AB - Background: Development and spread of cancer is linked to the inflammatory response, in which cytokines serve a key role. The inflammatory response may also form the basis for symptoms of cancer. This systematic review examines the relationship between cytokines and symptoms in incurable cancer.Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, Web of Science and PsycINFO databases were searched for studies from January 2004 to January 2020.Results: Twenty studies were selected (n = 1806 patients, 119 controls). Symptoms studied included depression, fatigue, pain, and loss of appetite. Nine studies examined patients with a specified tumour type, the remainder included patients with a mix of tumour types. Thirty-one cytokines were examined; multiple associations between cytokines and symptoms were described, supporting the hypothesis that cytokines may have a key role in symptom generation.Conclusion: Symptoms of incurable cancer are associated with circulating cytokines. Further study is required to characterise these relationships, and to explore their therapeutic potential.
KW - Cancer
KW - Cytokines
KW - Palliative medicine
KW - Symptoms
KW - Systemic inflammatory response
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85100432354&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2021.103222
DO - 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2021.103222
M3 - Review article
C2 - 33482344
AN - SCOPUS:85100432354
SN - 1040-8428
VL - 159
JO - Critical Reviews in Oncology/Hematology
JF - Critical Reviews in Oncology/Hematology
M1 - 103222
ER -