CRP and cancer: Those patients with an elevated preoperative C-reactive protein concentration (>10 mg l−1) had a mean cancer-specific survival of 65.5 months (95% CI 46.8–84.2) compared with 103.7 months (95% CI 81.8–125.6) in those patients with a C-reactive protein concentration in the normal range (⩽10 mg l−1).