The biological effects of sTIM-3 are unknown however, a study by Ge et al., demonstrated that osteosarcoma patients with higher levels of circulating soluble Tim-3 had relatively lower survival suggesting that the surgery-induced decrease in circulating soluble TIM-3 in this study may be a beneficial effect for patients and highlights the immunostimulatory effects of surgical removal of the tumour (27). Here, HAVCR2 is linked to osteosarcoma.