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Background Increasing evidence shows that chronic inflammation plays an important role in thyroid tumorigenesis. Cytokines as central mediators in inflammatory microenvironment can present both pro‐tumour and anti‐tumour effects and cytokine release may be influenced by soluble HLA‐G (sHLA‐G), an immune checkpoint molecule whose expression can also be induced by certain cytokines. Aim To understand the role of these soluble factors in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC). Methods We evaluated plasma levels of sHLA‐G and of 13 cytokines using ELISA and flow cytometry, respectively, in PTC patients at two time points: pre‐ and post‐thyroidectomy; and control subjects. Results Compared with controls, IL‐6 levels were increased, while IL‐1β, IFN‐α and TGF‐β1 levels were decreased in pre‐thyroidectomy PTC patients. IFN‐α and TGF‐β1 efficiently discriminated patients from controls and were associated with extrathyroidal extension and lymph node metastasis, respectively. In addition, TNF and IL‐13 were associated with male gender, lymph node metastasis and Hashimoto thyroiditis, and sHLA‐G with tumour invasion. Compared with pre‐thyroidectomy, IL‐4, IL‐10, TNF, IFN‐α and TGF‐β1 levels were increased in post‐thyroidectomy. Conclusion There are significant changes in the cytokine profile after surgical removal of the thyroid tumour, and IFN‐α e TGF‐β1 showed to be promising cytokines for discriminating PTC patients from controls. We also found that different cytokines are associated with clinicohistopathological characteristics of PTC related to poor prognosis, suggesting that cytokines seem to play an important role in PTC development and management.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the 100% rapid review (100%-RR) as an effective tool for internal quality control (IQC) in gynecological cytopathology services. Study Design: A total of 8,677 swabs were analyzed; the negative results were submitted to 100%-RR. Divergent cases were discussed in a consensus meeting to reach a conclusion on the final diagnosis. The data were entered into SAS statistical software, and the agreement of the 100%-RR results with the final diagnosis was tested with the weighted kappa statistic. Results: Of the 8,155 smears characterized as negative, 255 (3.13%) were abnormal smears, and 552 (6.77%) unsatisfactory smears were deemed negative. Regarding the results on the 8,155 smears subjected to 100%-RR when compared with the final diagnosis, there was agreement in 7,063 (86.60%) of them, and there were 1,092 (13.40%) discordant results (65.6%, unsatisfactory; 5.47%, atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance [ASC-US]). The κ index had an agreement of 0.867, with κ = 0.734 (p < 0.0001). Compared with the final diagnosis, the sensitivity of 100%-RR was 99.91% and its specificity was 99.4% for severe abnormalities. The sensitivity for high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions was 88.2%, with a specificity of 100.00%. For abnormalities considered borderline, such as ASC-US, the sensitivity was 94.50% and the specificity was 99.5%. Conclusion: The 100%-RR was considered efficient when used as an IQC method.

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The objective of this work was to evaluate the influence of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination on peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) proliferation and cytokine gene transcription. PBMCs isolated after HPV immunization were incubated with HPV vaccine, phytohemagglutinin, or buffer. Cell proliferation was assessed by MTT reduction assay. RNA was extracted from PBMCs, and the relative concentration of cytokine messenger RNA (mRNA) transcripts (IFN-β, IFN-γ, IL-12, TNF-α, IL-6, IL-17, or IL-10) relative to transcription of the β-actin gene was determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction. PBMC proliferation in response to HPV vaccine and PHA were greater than that observed in unstimulated cells (p<0.001). Cytokine mRNAs were upregulated in stimulated PBMC cultures. The median increase in vaccine-stimulated cultures was: IFN-β=334.4-fold; IL-12=46.33-fold; IFN-γ=12.64-fold; IL-6=9.07-fold; IL-17=7.33-fold; IL-10=6.47-fold; and TNF-α=2.36-fold. The IFN-β expression was significantly higher (p<0.05). Proliferative PBMC responses and multiple cytokine gene expression were detected in women who received the HPV vaccine.