Ovarian cancer and inflammation. Part 2. Anti-inflammatory cytokines

Inflammation plays a key role in epithelial ovarian cancer tumorigenesis and progression. The growth and progression of epithelial ovarian cancer may be due to local cytokine-induced immunosu-ppression, which may lead to an immunity impairment. Thus, cytokine antagonism may be an essential factor in the treatment of ovarian cancer. Based on the increased knowledge on the role of the immune system in ovarian cancer, major improvements are to be expected of immunotherapy based treatment of this disease. This article aims to summarize the current literature views on the evidence for a role for chronic inflammation with a specific focus on anti-inflammatory cytokines.