The blood concentrations of granulocytic elastase (PMN-E), alpha 1-antitrypsin and alpha 2-macroglobulin were examined to evaluate their clinical significance in patients who underwent hepatectomy due to liver cancer with liver cirrhosis (n = 31, Group A), due to liver cancer with chronic hepatitis (n = 5, Group B) and without hepatic complications (n = 6, Group C) and other major surgeries (n = 10, Group D). In all groups, on the first postoperative day, blood PMN-E increased rapidly more than three times of the preoperative levels. Despite a decreasing tendency from postoperative Day 3, the value in Group A reincreased on Day 5. The peak PMN-E values within 24 postoperative hours showed significant positive correlations (p less than 0.01) with the amounts of hemorrhage and blood transfusion during operation in all groups. Even in 18 cases without blood transfusion, peak PMN-E was positively correlated (p less than 0.05) with the operative time and the amount of blood loss during operation. In Group A, patients in whom blood PMN-E increased after postoperative Day 3 developed infection and adult respiratory distress syndrome. After temporary reduction after operation except for Group C, blood alpha 1-antitrypsin increased from postoperative Day 3. However, alpha 1-antitrypsin in Group A was significantly low (p less than 0.01), compared to the increased levels in Group C and D. Blood alpha 2-macroglobulin showed no tendency of postoperative increase in all groups.