If surgical stress is prolonged, its effects may propagate leading the organism to enter hypercatabolism (with substantial decrease in circulating albumin-ALB), impairment of wound healing mechanisms, increase in acute-phase proteins (such as PCT and CRP), and ultimately systematic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), in which unregulated production of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF/IL-6) and deregulated immune responses are observed [25,26]. The gene discussed is ALB; the disease is systemic inflammatory response syndrome.