Determination of correlation between cytokines IL 6, IL8, IL10, IL12, IL17 and severity of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients having hepatitis C

• Published in: Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association 2024-12, Vol.74 (12), p.2078-2085
• Main Authors: Ahmad, Ishtiaq, Ali, Murad, Hussain, Manzoor, Din, Rehman Ud
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular; Case-Control Studies; Cross-Sectional Studies; Development and progression; Female; Health aspects; Hepatitis C; Hepatitis C - complications; Hepatoma; Humans; Interleukin-10 - blood; Interleukin-17 - blood; Interleukin-6 - blood; Interleukin-8 - blood; Interleukins; Interleukins - blood; Liver; Liver Neoplasms; Male; Middle Aged; Neoplasm Staging; Pakistan - epidemiology; Physiological aspects; Retrospective Studies; Severity of Illness Index
• ISSN: 0030-9982; 0030-9982
• DOI: 10.47391/JPMA.10186

To determine the correlation between the levels of interleukins 6, 8, 10, 12 and 17 and the severity of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients positive for hepatitis C. The retrospective, cross-sectional, analytical study was conducted at the Department of Medicine, Mardan Medical Complex, Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, and comprised data of hepatocellular carcinoma patients who were positive for hepatitis C on polymerase chain reaction test from March 2021 to December 2022. A control group of healthy patients was also included. The severity of hepatocellular carcinoma was assessed using the Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer method, and the patients were classified into five stages: very early stage 0, earlystage A, intermediate-stage B, advanced-stage C, and end-stage D. Interleukin 6, 8, 10, 12 and 17 levels and disease severity were correlated using Pearson correlation coefficient. Data was analysed using SPSS 26. Of the 115 subjects, 67(58.3%) were patients and 48(41.7%) were controls. There were 72(62.6%) males and 43(37.4%) females. The median age of patients was 56 years (interquartile range: 38-64 years), and among the cases it was 36 years (interquartile range: 32-44 years). Among the patients, 8(11.94%) were at stage 0, 11(16.41%) stage A, 24(35.82%) stage B, 13(19.40%) stage C, and 11(16.41%) stage D. Intergroup differences indicated a significant difference, with interleukin levels being higher in patients with more advanced stages (p