In addition to its tumor angiogenesis-promoting effect,41 IL-1β has also been reported to promote tumor cell stemness, a fundamental biological event that is critical for tumorigenesis.42 We thus analyzed stemness-related genes in CD45− tumor cells and found that c-kit and nanog were upregulated in the L-MP group, but this change was blocked by the neutralization of IL-1β (Fig. 6h). The gene discussed is KIT; the disease is neoplasm.