Several case-control studies nested in prospective cohorts reported an inverse association between elevated levels of total IgE in pre-diagnostic serum samples and glioma risk.20–22 Also, a recent case-control study nested in the Janus Serum Bank Cohort (JSBC) in Norway assessed 277 cytokines and identified five (sIL10RB, VEGF, beta-Catenin, CCL22, and LIF) independently related to glioma risk in one of five periods prior to glioma diagnosis based on a single pre-diagnostic sample.23,24 These findings remain unconfirmed. The gene discussed is LIF; the disease is glioma.