Interleukin-1alpha concentration in tumors as a risk factor for liver metastasis in gastric cancer

To investigate the relationship between the concentration of interleukin-1alpha (IL-1alpha) and liver metastasis in gastric cancer, the concentration of IL-1alpha was measured in homogenized tumor samples from 61 patients with gastric cancer. A significantly higher concentration of IL-1alpha was observed in tumors from patients with liver metastasis than in those from patients without liver metastasis; in differentiated type tumors than in undifferentiated type tumors; in tumors associated with moderate to severe venous invasion than in those associated with mild or no invasion; and in tumors with expansive or intermediate growth pattern (INFalpha, INFbeta) than in those with an infiltrative pattern (INFgamma) by Student's t-test. Stepwise logistic regression revealed IL-1alpha, depth of invasion, venous invasion, and tumor size to be associated independently with liver metastasis. These findings led us to conclude that the IL-1alpha concentration was on eof the most useful determinants of liver metastasis among the various clinicopathologic characteristics.