Tocilizumab, a Proposed Therapy for the Cachexia of Interleukin6-Expressing Lung Cancer

Abstract

Our clinical and experimental studies revealed that serum IL-6 is a surrogate marker for evaluating cachexia and the prognosis of patients with chemotherapy resistant metastatic lung cancer and that tocilizumab has the potential of improving prognosis and ameliorating the cachexia that so devastates their quality of life. This outcome greatly encourages our clinical trials to evaluate the safety and efficacy of tocilizumab treatment for patients with increased serum IL-6.