Given that the main causes of death in ARDS patients are multiple organ failure (MOF) and sepsis, presumably resulting from a systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), inflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, IL-10, and immune cells such as T regulatory cell (Treg) have been hypothesized to predict the outcomes in ARDS patients7–9. Here, IL6 is linked to acute respiratory distress syndrome.