CXCL8 and gastric cancer: Furthermore, we also observed that GC-MSCs increased the activations of Akt and p44/42 MAPK (Erk1/2) in gastric cancer cells and this effect could be partly abrogated in the presence of IL-8-specific neutralizing antibody, indicating that GC-MSC-secreted IL-8 promoted gastric cancer growth and progression through regulating the signal pathways related to tumor growth and angiogenesis.