Azim et al. recently reported that the TNF-α -308 polymorphism contributes to infectious complications after esophagectomy.14 Moreover, associations between infection and genetic polymorphisms have been reported for other cytokines, including IL-1β, IL-6, and IL-10.15–18 These findings suggest that patient genotype may influence susceptibility to postoperative infection. The gene discussed is TNF; the disease is infection.