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Blood Cytokine Analysis Suggests That SARS-CoV-2 Infection Results in a Sustained Tumour Promoting Environment in Cancer Patients
- Source :
- Cancers, Vol 13, Iss 22, p 5718 (2021)
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- MDPI AG, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Cytokines, chemokines, and (angiogenic) growth factors (CCGs) have been shown to play an intricate role in the progression of both solid and haematological malignancies. Recent studies have shown that SARS-CoV-2 infection leads to a worse outcome in cancer patients, especially in haematological malignancy patients. Here, we investigated how SARS-CoV-2 infection impacts the already altered CCG levels in solid or haematological malignancies, specifically, whether there is a protective effect or rather a potentially higher risk for major COVID-19 complications in cancer patients due to elevated CCGs linked to cancer progression. Serially analysing immune responses with 55 CCGs in cancer patients under active treatment with or without SARS-CoV-2 infection, we first showed that cancer patients without SARS-CoV-2 infection (n = 54) demonstrate elevated levels of 35 CCGs compared to the non-cancer, non-infected control group of health care workers (n = 42). Of the 35 CCGs, 19 were common to both the solid and haematological malignancy groups and comprised previously described cytokines such as IL-6, TNF-α, IL-1Ra, IL-17A, and VEGF, but also several less well described cytokines/chemokines such as Fractalkine, Tie-2, and T cell chemokine CTACK. Importantly, we show here that 7 CCGs are significantly altered in SARS-CoV-2 exposed cancer patients (n = 52). Of these, TNF-α, IFN-β, TSLP, and sVCAM-1, identified to be elevated in haematological cancers, are also known tumour-promoting factors. Longitudinal analysis conducted over 3 months showed persistence of several tumour-promoting CCGs in SARS-CoV-2 exposed cancer patients. These data demonstrate a need for increased vigilance for haematological malignancy patients as a part of long COVID follow-up.
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 20726694
- Volume :
- 13
- Issue :
- 22
- Database :
- Directory of Open Access Journals
- Journal :
- Cancers
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- edsdoj.62d8aa4837a8463481aa74162ede7e63
- Document Type :
- article
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers13225718