Sarilumab has a higher risk for neutropenia than tocilizumab, the other IL-6 inhibitor, but a lower risk for dyslipidemia, injection site reactions, and gastrointestinal perforation.
We observed (i) significant reduction in chemotherapy-induced surge of cfCh in blood; (ii) significant reduction in chemotherapy-induced surge of inflammatory cytokines CRP, IL-6, IFNγ and TNFα in blood; (iii) abolition of chemotherapy-induced tissue DNA damage (γH2AX), apoptosis (active caspase-3) and inflammation (NFκB and IL-6) in multiple organs and peripheral blood mononuclear cells; (iv) prevention of prolonged neutropenia following a single injection of adriamycin and (v) significant reduction in death following a lethal dose of adriamycin.
The frequency of the IL-6-634 GC and GG genotypes was significantly higher in patients with grades 1-4 leukopenia (P=0.003; Crude-odds ratios (Cr-OR) =4.0), neutropenia (P=0.0051; Cr-OR=3.6), or thrombocytopenia (P<0.0001; Cr-OR=6.1) than in patients without these toxicities.
In one patient, IL-2 and IL-6 increased substantially (2,925 U/mL and 32,000 U/mL) concomitantly with grade 3 fever and transient grade 2 neutropenia, grade 2 lymphopenia, and grade 2 monocytopenia.