[Comparison of BAX expression in papillary carcinoma and papillary microcarcinoma of thyroid and its relationship with prognostic factors]

Background and Aim: thyroid papillary carcinoma [PTC] is the most common thyroid cancer. BAX gene is the first known pro-apoptotic member of the Bcl-2 protein family. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between BAX expression and some nprognostic factors in PTC and papillary microcarcinoma [PMC]

Materials and Methods: in this cross-sectional, descriptive - analytical study, we obtained data from the records of 105 patients who had undergone thyroidectomy with a final diagnosis PMC and PTC, in Mostafa-Khomeini Hospital, from 2012 to 2014. The data included age, gender, tumor size and lymph node involvement. We investigated BAX expression by immunohistochemistry staining and capsular invasion by hematoxylin - eosin staining. Considering the percentage of positive tumor cells, BAX grading was done. Data were analyzed by Fischer's ,Chi-Square and T tests

Result: in this study, 87.5% of patients were female. 81.9 % of patients had no lymph node involvement. There was only a significant association between the type of tumor and lymph node involvement [P= 0.02]. We found no significant difference between papillary and micropapillary carcinoma in regard to BAX expression. Different grades of BAX expression had significant relationship with tumor size, lymph node involvement, and capsular invasion [P<0.001]. Age [P< 0.02], BAX gene expression [P=0.001] and tumor size [P<0.001] showed significant statistical relationships with one another

Conclusion: BAX expression is associated with lymph node involvement, capsular invasion and mean tumor size; and can be used to estimate the prognosis of PMC and PTC

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors: epidemiology and treatment outcomes

Numerous studies have investigated the prevalence, incidence and clinical manifestations of gastrointestinal stromal tumors [GISTs]. However, little is known about GISTs in Iran. This pioneer study focuses on description of 36 patients with GISTs in Iran. A database was created for 36 patients suffering from GIST who were treated in Loghman Medical Center and Tehran Cancer Institute in Tehran, Iran. Information on age, sex, clinical manifestations, treatment and outcomes were recorded and analyzed using SPSS version 13. Patients had an average age of 60 years; and 16 of them were males. The disease was most commonly manifested by abdominal mass, weight loss, and anemia. Twenty one patients had a mass smaller than 10cm; and in 33 patients KIT test was positive. In the follow-up, 5 patients experienced relapse and 3 succumbed due to advanced cancer. Primary results showed that GISTs might have different manifestations and incidence in Iran compared to other parts of the world. We hope that this study could serve as a starting point for the better understanding and classification of this disease in Iran and for development of improved management strategies

Expression of E-cadherin in primary breast cancer and its correlation with prognostic factors

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women and after lung cancer, it is the second cause of death in women. Different biological markers are being used for determination of prognosis and patients' responses to the therapy regimes. E-cadherin is one of these markers. The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency of E-cadherin expression in primary breast cancer and its correlation with the grade, size of tumor and axillary lymph nodes involved. This cross sectional study was performed on 85 patients with primary breast cancer who were admitted in Mostafa Khomeini Hospital in Tehran, Iran [2003-2007]. One section was prepared from the tumoral tissue and lymph nodes sections from all patients and they were stained with H and E. In another tissue section, E-cadherin was evaluated by a immunohistochemical method and then the tumor size, its grade and the number of lymph nodes involved were determined. The data were analyzed with SPSS software 11.5, using Chi-square, Mann -Whitney and Spearman correlation tests. Our data showed that 95.3% of the samples were positive for E-cadherin and 67.1% of the patients had lymph nodes involvement. The average size of the tumor was found 3.09 +/- 1.33 cm. In this study, 41% of the tissue samples were stained with E-caherin more than 75% [3+]. No significant relationship was found between E-cadherin expression and related variables, but a significantly reverse relationship was found between E-cadherin expression and the grade, tumor size and the number of lymph nodes involved [P<0.01]. Considering the results of this study, it seems that the reduction in E-cadherin expression in tumor cells, leads to increase in tumor size, its grade and the number of lymph nodes involved

[Expression of Bcl-2 gene in primary breast cancer and its correlation with some prognostic factors]

The breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women. Bcl-2 expression has been determined in more than half of the cases of breast cancer. The purpose of this study was to determine the expression of bcl-2 gene in primary breast cancer and its correlation with grade, stage and axillary lymph node involvement. The study was a cross-sectional one that was performed on 75 patients with breast cancer admitted to Mostafa Khomeini hospital [2000-2005]. After preparing the samples, a tissue section from each sample was obtained. One of the tumoral sections and one of the lymph node sections were stained using H and E. We determined the type of the tumor, the number of lymph nodes, the stage and the grade of the tumor. We studied Bcl-2 with polyclonal antibody by IHC. Our study showed that 69.3% of patients had hymph node involvment. In addition, 41.3% of samples were positive for Bcl-2, 58.7% of samples were in stage II and many patients [42.7%] were in grade III. In this study, we didn't find any relationship between bcl-2 and stage and lymph node involvment. We also found a significant association between bcl-2 and grade [P<0.006]. Also, high bcl-2 expression was more frequent in high-grade tumor. According to the results obtained from earlier studies and our study, it seems that bcl2 is a prognostic factor in breast cancer. But further investigations with more specimens and long-time follow-up are required to clarify the exact role of Bcl-2 in the prognosis of breast cancer

[ status of cytokeratin 7 expression in primary breast cancer and it's relationship with prognostic factors]

Background: breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women. Some biologic markers are used for determination of prognosis and prediction of treatment response. Cytokeratin 7 [CK7] is an Intermediate filament protein of epithelial cells. The purpose of this study, is to determine the expression of cytokeratin 7 in primary breast cancer and it's correlation with grade, stage and axillary lymphnode involvement

Materials and Methods: this was a cross-sectional study performed on 75 samples of patients with breast cancer admitted in Mostafa Khomeini Hosptial [2000-2005]. After preparing the samples, a tissue section from each samples was obtained. One of the tumoral section and one of the lymphnode sections were stained by H and E. We determined the type of the tumor, the number of lymphnodes, the stage and the grade of the tumor. We studied cytokeratin 7 with monocolonal antibady by IHC

Results: our study showed that 93.3% of samples were positive for cytokeratin 7. 70.7% of patients had lymphnod involvement, 57.3% of samples were in stage II and the most of patients [42.7%] were in grade II. In this study, we found significant relation between cytokeratin 7 and lymphnode involvement [P=0.002], lymphnode number [P=0.004] and stage [P=0.002]. We didn't find any relationship between CK7 and grade

Conclusion: according to he results of previous studies and our study, it seem that cytokeratin 7 is a prognostic factor in breast cancer. But further investigations with more specimens and long-time follow-up is required to clarify the exact role of cytokeratin 7 in prognosis of breast cancer

[Effects of education on students' parents' knowledge towards cardiovascular risk factors]

Heart diseases represent the most common causes of mortality worldwide. Knowledge towards heart disease and its risk factors is an important pre-requisite for an individual to implement behavioral change leading towards heart disease prevention. The aim of the present study was to determine the effect of education on knowledge of students' parents' towards cardiovascular risk factors. This interventional study was carried out in Tehran 13[th] district. A well-prepared questionnaire was used to collect initial data. Data analysis was achieved by SPSS software using ANOVA, paired t-test and correlation coefficient. Totally, 432 subjects with the mean age of 34.6 +/- 5.9 years took part in our study, of whom 89.1% were householder. The mean knowledge score was significantly differed before and after education [p<0.05]. Unfortunately, parents' knowledge of cardiovascular risk factors were not adequate. This study suggests that educational programs can positively influence the knowledge towards cardiovascular risk factors