Objective: To investigate the relationship between changes of the plasma cytokine levels and the occurrence of postoperative ileus in patients after radical resection for colorectal cancer. Methods: One hundred consecutive patients undergoing radical resection for sigmoid or rectal cancer were selected. Venous blood samples were drawn from the patients on postoperative day (POD) 1, 3 and 5 for measurement of the plasma levels of procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP) and tumor necrosis α (TNF-α). The subjects were divided into ileus group and non-ileus group according to whether an ileus was present, and the pre-, intra- and postoperative conditions, as well as the levels of above cytokines were compared between the two groups. Results: Ileus occurred in 8 of the patients on POD 10 to 15. The time to first flatus passage in ileus group was significantly longer than that in non-ileus group, but other variables that included age, sex, body mass index, tumor site, intraoperative blood loss, operative time and length of postoperative hospital stay showed no significant difference between the two groups (all P>0.05). The PCT levels on POD 1 and 3 were not significantly different between the two groups (P>0.05), but it was remarkably increased on POD 5 in ileus group and the difference reached significant significance versus non-ileus group (P=0.014). The changes of postoperative CRP and TNF-α level in the two groups showed a similar tendency, and the differences between the two groups at each time point had no statistical significance (all P>0.05). Conclusion: Increased plasma PCT level may be a laboratory indicator for early prediction of the occurrence of postoperative ileus following colorectal carcinoma surgery.