CXCL8 and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: To determine whether the p38 MAPK-NF-κB signaling pathway was associated with IL-8 and affected HNSCC progression, the expressions of IκB-α, p-IκB-α and NF-κB in HNSCC cells that were treated with IL-8 for 72 h were obtained by western blotting (Figure 5D).