IL6 and melanoma: This may be due to altered monocyte function in individuals with abdominal obesity, for whom glucocorticoid suppression of interleukin-6 (IL-6) production by monocytes is reduced [48], and they may thus have more pro-tumorigenic monocytes, given that glucocorticoid stimulated IL-6 production in melanoma cells facilitates metastatic growth [40].