IL-12 (Interleukin-12)
Novel biomarker — consistently elevated and correlates with disease activity
- Expression
- Markedly elevated
- Evidence level
- moderate
Role in pathogenesis
IL-12 was found to be markedly increased in all 23 POEMS patients studied (Kanai et al. 2012). Both IL-12 and VEGF decreased significantly with treatment, correlating with clinical improvement. Unlike other cytokines (IL-6, TNF-alpha) which are elevated in only some patients, IL-12 was consistently elevated in all patients, suggesting it may be a more reliable biomarker alongside VEGF.