Effect of Anaesthesia Technique on anti-tumor Immunity through TGF-β levels in Adult Patients Undergoing Surgery for Oral Cancer

Background: There is a paucity of literature regarding the effect of anesthetic techniques on anti-tumor immunity, especially in Oral cavity Malignancies. We designed a study to evaluate the effect of 3 anesthetic techniques – Opioid, Lignocaine infusion and Dexmeditomedine infusion-based on anti-tumor immunity, using TGF-β, T-helper cell profile and inflammatory markers such as IL-6 and IL-10. Methods: A pilot prospective randomized trial was conducted in 90 patients undergoing surgery for Oral cavity malignancy under general anesthesia in a tertiary specialty cancer hospital. Adult cancer patients of the American Society of Anaesthesiologists (ASA) physical status I-III fulfilling the inclusion criteria were randomized to either group A (Opioid general anesthesia), group B (lignocaine infusion-based general anesthesia), or group C (Dexmedetomidine infusion-based general anesthesia). Preoperative (morning of surgery) and postoperative (24 hours after surgery) blood samples were obtained. Statistical analysis was done, and the results were analyzed. Results: Demographic profile and pre-operative parameters were comparable between both groups. We did not find any statistically significant difference in the Post-operative levels of TGF-β, neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), Monocyte Lymphocyte Ratio (MLR), platelet lymphocyte ratio (PLR), IL-6, IL-10, and T-helper cell profile (IFN-γ, IL-17A, and IL-4 as surrogate markers) among the three study groups. However, it was noted that the overall Opioid consumption was markedly reduced in Group C without any major adverse effects being noted.