In colorectal cancer, serum cytokine alterations occur in a stage-dependent fashion.28 In pancreatic cancer, levels of IL-6, -8, -10 and TNFα are higher than in healthy controls.29 Whether these profiles represent a chronic inflammatory state predisposing to cancer, or a reaction to the malignancy, remains unclear. The gene discussed is IL6; the disease is familial pancreatic carcinoma.