Objective Sentinel lymph node in breast cancer is a predictor of the tumor’s metastatic potential.Cytokines emerging from antitumor immune response might also target sentinel lymph node (SLN).In this study,we evaluated the cytokine profile including interleukin-8 (IL-8),interleukin-12 (IL-12),interferon-gamma (IFN-γ),and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) for the T-cell response.Methods From January 2008 to August 2010,35 patients with breast mass underwent SLN biopsy in UNIMED Medical Institute.The specimens were formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded for hematoxylin and eosin staining and immunohistochemistry with following markers:IL-8,IL-12,IFN-γ and TNF-α.The staining intensity was scored according to four grades:negative (-),weak expression (+),moderately positive expression (+ +),strong positive expression (+ + +).The correlation between the expression of cytokines and pathological characteristics were also analyzed using the Spearman Rank Correlation test.Results Out of 35 patients,SLN metastases were observed in 20 patients and among them,75% (15 /20) were strongly stained (+ + +) with IL-8 and moderately stained (+ +) with IL-12,but only 25% (5 /20) were strongly stained (+ + +) with IFN-γ and TNF-α.The expression of IL-8 was significantly associated with all tumor grades (r=0.639,P=0.00),estrogen receptor (r=0.778,P=0.01),progesterone receptor (r=0.759 P=0.00) and HER-2 /neu receptor (r=0.863 P=0.00).Conclusion The strong association between IL-8 expression and SLN metastases might highlight the prognostic significance of IL-8 in SLN. Objective This gene, lymphoid in breast cancer is a predictor of the tumor’s metastatic potential. Cytokines emerging from antitumor immune response might also target sentinel lymph node (SLN) .In this study, we evaluated the cytokine profile including interleukin-8 (IL-8) , interleukin-12 (IL-12), interferon-gamma (IFN-γ), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF- alpha) for the T-cell response. Methods From January 2008 to August 2010, 35 patients with breast mass underwent SLN biopsy in UNIMED Medical Institute. The specimens were formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded for hematoxylin and eosin staining and immunohistochemistry with following markers: IL-8, IL-12, IFN- γ and TNF-α. The staining intensity was scored according to four grades: negative (-), weak expression (+), moderately positive expression (+ +), strong positive expression (+ + +). The correlation between the expression of cytokines and pathological characteristics were also analyzed using the Spearman Rank Correlation test.Results Out of 35 p atients, SLN metastases were observed in 20 patients and among them, 75% (15/20) were strongly stained (+ + +) with IL-8 and moderately stained (+ +) with IL- 12, but only 25% (5 The expression of IL-8 was significantly associated with all tumor grades (r = 0.639, P = 0.00), estrogen receptor (r = 0.778, Conclusions The strong association between IL-8 expression and SLN metastases might highlight the prognostic significance of IL (P = 0.01), progesterone receptor (r = 0.759 P = 0.00) and HER-2 / neu receptor -8 in SLN.