The majority of in vivo studies showed a null or inverse association of ghrelin with risk and progression of most cancers , suggesting that ghrelin/ghrelin-receptor agonist treatment may have a favorable safety profile to use for cancer cachexia .
Ghrelin is a hormone with multiple physiologic functions , including promotion of growth hormone release , stimulation of appetite and regulation of energy homeostasis .
Treatment with ghrelin/ghrelin-receptor agonists is a prospect i ve therapy for disease-related cachexia and malnutrition .
In vitro studies have shown high expression of ghrelin in cancer tissue , although its role including its impact in cancer risk and progression has not been established .
Ghrelin as an acute-phase reactant during postoperative stress response.
Ghrelin is a growth hormone-releasing peptide , discovered in 1999 by Kojima et al. Its potential role in inflammation and stress response is not yet clear . The purpose of this study was to characterize perioperative levels of circulating ghrelin in relation to different surgical procedures . The authors compared plasma ghrelin changes with cortisol , cytokines , and acute-phase proteins . The prospect i ve study was performed on 22 patients with resection for colon cancer ( group 1 ) . Group 2 , functioning as a comparative group , consisted of 22 patients with elective laparotomic cholecystectomy .  Plasma concentrations of ghrelin , cortisol , tumor necrosis factor-alpha ( TNF-alpha ) , interleukin-1beta , IL-6 , IL-8 , soluble IL-2 receptor , C reactive protein , and alpha1-antitrypsin were estimated repeatedly during a 72-hour postoperative period . Data revealed significant elevation of plasma ghrelin 24 hours after resection of coli ( median 508.0 ng/l , interquartile range 398.2 - 633.7 ng/l ) in relation to both preoperative levels ( 317.6 ng/l , 253.4 - 355.1 ng/l , p<0.01 ) and group 2 maximal postoperative levels ( 386.2 ng/l , 324 - 432 ng/l , p<0.05 ) . Ghrelin levels returned to initial status 36 - 48 hours after surgery with subsequent decline to subnormal levels . The regression coefficient was the highest for ghrelin and TNF-alpha 24 hours after laparotomy ( r=0.64 , p<0.05 ) and for ghrelin and IL-6 24 hours after surgery ( r=0.56 , p<0.05 ) . Maximal postoperative levels of all tested parameters except for cortisol and IL-1beta differed significantly between both patient groups at p<0.05 . After large abdominal surgery , ghrelin shows itself as an acute-phase reactant . The significant correlation between ghrelin and inflammatory cytokines supposes their regulatory role in this period . Our comparison of more- and less-invasive surgical procedures with similar nutritional restrictions argues for a dominant role of inflammatory factors in postoperative ghrelin elevation
The majority of in vivo studies showed a null or inverse association of ghrelin with risk and progression of most cancers , suggesting that ghrelin/ghrelin-receptor agonist treatment may have a favorable safety profile to use for cancer cachexia .
Ghrelin is a hormone with multiple physiologic functions , including promotion of growth hormone release , stimulation of appetite and regulation of energy homeostasis .
Treatment with ghrelin/ghrelin-receptor agonists is a prospect i ve therapy for disease-related cachexia and malnutrition .
In vitro studies have shown high expression of ghrelin in cancer tissue , although its role including its impact in cancer risk and progression has not been established .