Effects of interleukin-1 alpha administration on pituitary-adrenal and pituitary-thyroid axes function of patients with ovarian cancer

Abstract

We monitored pituitary, adrenal, and thyroid function in 21 women who had recurrent ovarian cancer and who received interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1 alpha) before and after carboplatin. Serum cortisol, corticotropin, thyroxine, and thyrotropin were measured in the morning before and at the end of each treatment cycle. Serum corticotropin levels were suppressed in many patients despite a normal simultaneous serum cortisol; thyrotropin tended to rise with declining thyroxine levels after prolonged IL-1 alpha administration. However, serum cortisol and thyroxine remained within the normal range at all times, in all patients. Thyroid dysfunction consistent with thyroiditis was seen in one patient. We conclude that administration of IL-1 alpha as currently used in clinical studies does not create significant thyroid or adrenocortical dysfunction.