Discover how scientists have uncovered the links between inflammatory proteins and endometrial cancer risk, with IL-6 emerging as a potential target for future prevention and treatment strategies. Study: Circulating inflammatory and immune response proteins and endometrial cancer risk: a nested case-control study and Mendelian randomization analyses . Image Credit: Vink Fan / Shutterstock.
com A recent study published in the journal eBioMedicine identifies potential inflammatory and immune biomarkers of endometrial cancer. What are the key drivers of endometrial cancer? Over the past several decades, the prevalence of endometrial cancer has continued to rise throughout the world. In addition to genetic mutations, several other factors contribute to the proliferation of dormant mutated cells and subsequent development of endometrial cancer.
Inflammation and immune dysregulation, for example, are considered major contributors to endometrial carcinogenesis. Moreover, diseases characterized by chronic low-grade inflammation, such as obesity, are well-established risk factors for this type of cancer. Previous studies have identified several inflammatory and immune biomarkers that are associated with endometrial carcinogenesis risk, including interleukin 6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), C-reactive protein (CPR), and certain chemokines.
However, these studies were limited by their smaller sample size and fewer number of circulating biomarkers tested, which restricted the .