TNF and pericardial effusion: Cytokines, such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) are candidates for the induction of pericardial effusions because they have been implicated in the induction and amplification of inflammatory reactions in exudative effusions [7, 9, 10, 13–17].