To determine serum levels of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (sICAM-1) and transforming growth factor ␣ (TGF-␣) in 51 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma before, during, and after radiation therapy (5-year follow-up period). Results: The mean±SD serum levels of the 2 cytokines were found to be higher in patients before radiotherapy (sI-CAM-1, 369.6±123.7 ng/mL; TGF-␣, 36.6±24.6 ng/mL) than after radiotherapy (sICAM-1, 225.9±124.3 ng/mL; TGF-␣, 20.2±22.3 ng/mL) (PϽ.05), and they were significantly higher in patients with recurrence (sICAM-1, 512.5±271.2 ng/mL; TGF-␣, 48.2±23.4 ng/mL) and in those who died (sICAM-1, 542.6±245.4 ng/mL; TGF-␣, 50.2±28.8 ng/mL) than in patients with no recurrence (sICAM-1, 217.9 ± 116.4 ng/mL; TGF-d, 21.5 ± 26.8 ng/mL) and in those who survived (sICAM-1, 209.4±167.2 ng/mL; TGF-␣, 20.4 ± 27.3 ng/mL) (PϽ.05). The increases in serum levels occurred approximately 3 months before relapse. Conclusion: We found that sICAM-1 and TGF-␣ levels are extremely useful markers for predicting illness, recurrence, and survival.