CRP and cancer: It has been postulated that the presence of an enhanced systemic inflammatory response may be responsible (McArdle et al, 2005), as the systemic inflammatory response, as evidenced by an elevated C-reactive protein concentration, has been shown to be associated with poor cancer-specific survival, independent of tumour stage (Nielsen et al, 2000; McMillan et al, 2003; Crozier et al, 2006).