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The role of cytokines in cancer‐related fatigue
Author(s) -
Kurzrock Razelle
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.052
H-Index - 304
eISSN - 1097-0142
pISSN - 0008-543X
DOI - 10.1002/1097-0142(20010915)92:6+<1684::aid-cncr1497>3.0.co;2-z
Subject(s) - medicine , cachexia , cancer , cytokine , tumor necrosis factor alpha , autocrine signalling , immunology , erythropoiesis , immune system , proinflammatory cytokine , wasting , anemia , inflammation , cancer research , receptor
Fatigue is prominent in cancer patients and probably multifactorial in origin. Factors contributing to fatigue include anemia, weight loss, fever, pain, medication, and infection. In cancer patients, many of these factors are influenced by a frequently disrupted balance between endogenous cytokine levels and their natural antagonists. Indeed, cancer cells and the immune system appear to overexpress a range of cytokines in patients with malignancies. Some of these cytokines act as autocrine or paracrine growth factors for the neoplastic tissue while simultaneously causing secondary symptoms related to fatigue. For instance, cancer‐associated anemia may be due to a blunted erythropoietin response and/or cytokines (interleukin‐1 [IL‐1], IL‐6, tumor necrosis factor‐α [TNF‐α]), which suppress erythropoiesis. Cancerous cachexia, a wasting syndrome and a hallmark of cancer, can be attributed to loss of appetite or enhanced energy expenditure. Several different interleukins, as well as TNF, interferon‐γ, and leukemia inhibitory factor, act as cachectins in animal models. Similarly, fever and night sweats are influenced by pyrogenic cytokines. Recently, molecules that function as cytokine antagonists have been identified. These molecules may be exploitable in combating the components of cancer‐related fatigue, and may inhibit tumor growth as well. Cancer 2001;92:1684–88. © 2001 American Cancer Society.