Utility of blood DNA levels in diagnosis of breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: Prognostic factors, including both histopathological and biochemical variables, influence the choice of modality and the course of therapy in breast cancer. The biomarkers found in biological fluids, particularly in blood, apparently hold the best promise for the development of screening assays. AIM: To find out if any correlation exists between blood DNA level and tumor stage, size and grade. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This case-control study was carried out on 52 female patients in the age-group of 18-70 years. The cases comprised 25 patients with histopathologically confirmed malignant breast cancer, while 27 patients with benign breast tumors served as the control group. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: We used the Student's 't' test to compare the differences between the blood DNA levels in the two groups. Pearson's test was performed to find out the correlation between blood DNA levels and the TNM stage, tumor size and grade. RESULTS: It was observed that blood DNA levels showed statistically significant correlation with the TNM stage, tumor size and grade. CONCLUSION: The blood DNA level can be utilized as a noninvasive marker to assess tumor aggressiveness. Thus, it can be useful as a prognostic marker and as a marker of tumor burden.

Ferritin, a potent threat for acute myocardial infarction?

BACKGROUND: Studies conducted have yielded contradicting results on the role of ferritin as a risk factor for acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The relation of ferritin status to risk of AMI in Indian men, along with other established major risk factors like serum total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, VLDL cholesterol and triglycerides has not been documented previously. The hypothesis that increased serum ferritin was related to increased chances of AMI along with the risk factors was tested. METHODS: Case control study involving 145 men (100 cases and 45 healthy control subjects) in the age group of 30-70 years. Serum ferritin levels were estimated by using ELISA, and other risk factors by enzymatic methods. RESULTS: Increased serum ferritin levels significantly (p < 0.001) correlated with an increase of other risk factors in Indian male patients with AMI. CONCLUSION: Significant direct correlation between serum ferritin levels and risk of AMI was observed.