Objective To detect the expressions of interleukin-1β(IL-1β)in peripheral blood and programmed death molecule 1(PD-1)in esophageal cancer tissues and to analyze their influence on clinicopathological features and prognosis of patients.Methods A total of 127 patients with esophageal cancer who underwent surgical treatment at the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Science and Technology from January 2018 to May 2020 were collected and divided into two groups:the survival group(n= 95)and the death group(n= 32),based on their survival status 3 years after surgery.Clinical data of the patients were collected.The expressions of PD-1 and programmed death ligand 1(PD-L1)in esophageal cancer tissues were detected through immunohistochemistry,while the levels of IL-6,IL-1β,and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)in peripheral blood were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA).Cox regression analysis was performed to identify the risk factors for death 3 years after surgery.The 3-year Kaplan-Meier survival curves of patients with different expressions of IL-1βand PD-1 were plotted,and the survival rates among the three groups were compared using the log-rank test.Results In the death group,the proportions of patients with age≥60 years old,lymph node metastasis,infiltration into the muscle layer,tumor diameter>3 cm,IL-1β high level,TNF-αhigh level,and PD-1 positive expression were higher than those in the survival group.Conversely,the proportions of patients with high IL-6 levels were lower than those in the survival group,with statistically significant differences between the groups(P<0.05).Infiltration into the myometrium,tumor diameter>3 cm,high IL-1β level,and PD-1 positive expression were identified as independent risk factors for postoperative death.The 3-year survival rates were 92.4%,13.3%,and 84.2%for patients in the normal IL-1β+PD-1 negative group,high IL-1β+PD-1 positive group,and normal IL-1β+PD-1 positive group/high IL-1β+PD-1 negative group,respectively.Significant differences existed between the groups(χ2=82.318,P<0.01),with the highest survival rate observed in the normal IL-1β+ PD-1 negative group and the lowest in the high IL-1β+ PD-1 positive group.Conclusion Positive expression of PD-1 and a high level of IL-1βwere identified as independent risk factors for death in patients with esophageal cancer.Notably,patients with positive expression of PD-1+high levels of IL-1βexhibited a low survival rate.