IL17A and neoplasm: To date, it has been revealed that the expression levels of some over-expressed genes within tumor microenvironments are related to the prognosis of ESCC, such as interleukin 17 (IL-17), SKP2, Foxp3 and Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL); however the results are still conflicting [8-13].