Consistent with the gene expression data, there was an increased secretion of IL-8 from HIV-exposed BC vs untreated (4.35 vs 0.86 ng/ml, p < 0.0002) and vs heat-inactivated HIV (4.35 vs 1.32 ng/ml, p < 0.0005) as confirmed by ELISA (Fig. 4A). This evidence concerns the gene CXCL8 and breast cancer.