Expression of anti-apoptotic gene MCL-1 and differentiation marker BCL-6, downstream targets of the IL-6/IL-23/pSTAT3 axis, was significantly higher in tumor samples, with 1.5-fold and 3.5-fold increase in tumor tissues compared to the adjacent non-tumorous tissue (P = 0.0038 and P < 0.001, respectively). Here, IL6 is linked to neoplasm.