Combining mammaglobin and carcinoembryonic mRNA markers for early detection of micrometastases from breast cancers - a molecular study of 59 patients

Introduction: As many as 30% of node-negative breast cancer patients relapse within five years, suggesting that current histological detection methods are inadequate for identifying metastatic disease. Detecting small number of cancer cells in the breast tissue or lymph node by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays using a combination of tissue and cancer specific markers might be very useful in the early detection or monitoring of the treatment. Mammaglobin is a member of the uteroglobin gene family and appears to be expressed only in breast tissue. Carcinoembryonic antigen has been the preferred molecular marker for detection of micro metastases in lymph nodes in almost all carcinomas. Materials and Methods: Samples were collected from randomly chosen breast cancer patients undergoing modified mastectomy or breast conserving surgery between September 2003 and July 2004. RT-PCR was applied to study the expression of MMG and CEA markers. Breast cancer micrometastases in axillary lymph nodes were also assessed. Results: The MMG marker was positive in 9/10 normal breast tissues, 3/ 3 breast fibroadenomas and 37/39 of breast carcinoma tissues, giving an overall sensitivity of 94%. The sensitivity was 80% for metastatic lymph node samples. On the other hand CEA showed 95% sensitivity for malignant breast tumors and 100% sensitivity for metastatic lymph nodes. Conclusions: RT-PCR using a combination of MMG and CEA markers is a powerful tool to complement current routine histopathology techniques for detection of breast cancer metastasis in axillary nodes

Prevalence of human papillomavirus genotypes in women with normal and abnormal cervical cytology in Iran

Introduction: HPV infection has a prime etiologic role in development and progression of cervical cancer, one of the most frequent forms of cancer among women in developing countries. This study was designed to determine the most prevalent HPV genotypes in women with normal and abnormal cervical cytology in Iran. Materials and Methods: Samples from134 patients, including 127 who attended gynecology clinics and 7 with solid cervical tumors were used. All 127 patients underwent routine Pap tests for cytological evaluation and at the same visit a sample of cervical epithelial cells was obtained by scraping the cervix osteum. In each case HPV infection was primarily evaluated by PCR using GP 5/6 primers and then subtyping was performed in proved infected samples with specific primers for HPV 16, 18, 31, 33, 11 and 6. After cytological evaluation, 50 patients with abnormal Pap tests were categorized as the abnormal group and the remaining 77 patients as the normal group. Results: In the normal group, HPV infection was established in 10 cases (13% infection rate), while 30 HPV positive cases were discovered in the abnormal group (60% infected). The most prevalent genotypes among the infected samples were HPV 16 (76%), HPV18 (12.7%) and HPV11/6 (8.5%). Moreover, all 7 tumor samples were positive for HPV general primers of which, 5 samples were infected with HPV 16, two were co-infected with HPV16,18 and HPV16,31 genotypes and one was infected with HPV 18. Conclusions: Infection with HPV 16 was found to be significantly higher in abnormal group in comparison with normal group (42% vs. 11.6%, P value <0.005), likewise HPV18 genotypes were proved to be more prevalent in abnormal group (8% vs. 0%, P value <0.05). No significant relation between other HPV genotypes and pathologic cervical changes was obtained. According to our study high rates of infection with HPV genotypes in sexually active Iranian women makes molecular investigation for HPV16 and 18 very essential in clinical approaches to patients with proven dysplasia in their screening tests and also for those patients with borderline (i.e. ASCUS) or incongruous pathology reports. Larger studies are required to determine the most appropriate vaccine with highest protection in Iranian women

The incidence of prostate cancer in Iran: Results of a population-based cancer registry

Background: Little is known about the epidemiology of prostate cancer in Iranian men. We carried out an active prostate cancer surveillance program in five provinces of Iran. Methods: Data used in this study were obtained from population-based cancer registries between 1996 and 2000. Results: The age-standardized incidence rate of prostate carcinoma in the five provinces was 5.1 per 100,000 person-years. No significant difference was seen in the age-standardized incidence rate of prostate cancer within the provinces studied. The mean±SD age of patients with prostate cancer was 67±13.5 years. Conclusion: The incidence of prostate cancer in Iran is very low as compared to the Western countries. This can partly be explained by lack of nationwide screening program, younger age structure and quality of cancer registration system in Iran

Rat xenograft chondrosarcoma development by human tissue fragment

Aim: We conducted this study to develop a chondrosarcoma on rat by graft of human chondrosarcoma tumor tissue. Methods: Fourteen male Sprague-Dawley rats equally divided in xenograft-implanted and control groups. On the lateral side of the right femur distal 1/3, 5 mm incision was done on the skin after animal anesthesia. Then, was drilled 3 mm on the bone and implanted the xenograft in the bone. Radiography was taken from the operated femur weekly until the fourth week and monthly for 3 months. Four animals of each group were sacrificed after 4 weeks of operation; femur was harvested for histopathological study

Challenges to promoting population-based cancer registration in Iran: A workshop report

In December 2011, the Cancer Research Centre of the Cancer Institute of Iran sponsored a 3-day workshop on "Cancer Registration Principle and Challenges in Iran", which convened cancer registry experts. The objectives of the workshop were: to introduce standard cancer registration, to review the policy and procedure of cancer registration in Iran, and to review the best practices in the cancer registries in Iran. Challenges to cancer registration were discussed and recommendations were developed. The workshop was evaluated by participants for better organization of subsequent workshops. The objective of publication of this report is that based on Cancer in 5 Continents, many low- or middle-income countries do not meet the criteria for a standard population-based cancer registry (PBCR); on the other hand cancer is the most important cause of mortality and the essential part of any cancer control program is the cancer registry. Therefore this report focuses on problems and challenges of PBCR and provides recommendations which might help other developing countries to decrease their PBCR defects

An overview of oncology researches in Iran: A scientometric approach (1974 - February 2019)

Background: With the growing rate of tumors, cancer has become one of the most important health concerns in Iran. The urgency with which Iranian researchers and health professionals address this challenge leads to a load of scientific materials. Methods: To reveal gaps in produced knowledge and suggest future research directions, applying well-validated scientometric tools, we assessed the trends of Iranian published scientific articles and citations in the field of oncology. The inclusion criteria consisted of all oncology-related articles that were data-based, and peer-reviewed; with at least an abstract published in English; and authored by at least one researcher affiliated with Iranian institutions. Results: Amongst 5 063 525 oncology research records indexed in at least one of PubMed, Scopus, or Web of Science Core Collection (WoS) from the start to February 2019, Iranian researches accounted for about 24 867 (0.49). Published articles on all cancers by Iranian researchers had a sharp continuously ascending trend, with the same pattern for citations received. Some important topics such as complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies have been missing and some such as diagnostic and pharmaceutical innovations have been less investigated. The most collaborative country was the United States, while no close collaboration was observed with China that was introduced as the most productive country in the field of oncology over the past decades. Conclusion: Despite the progressive trend in most oncology fields, some significant practical topics are still missing. Systematic reviews of produced theoretical innovations and translating them to functional knowledge can be of importance to fulfill the mentioned gaps. © 2020 The Author(s)

National surveillance of cancer survival in Iran (IRANCANSURV): Analysis of data of 15 cancer sites from nine population-based cancer registries

Cancer survival is a key indicator for the national cancer control programs. However, survival data in the East Mediterranean region (EMR) are limited. We designed a national cancer survival study based on population-based cancer registries (PBCRs) from nine provinces in Iran. The current study reports 5-year net survival of 15 cancers in Iranian adults (15-99 years) during 2014 to 2015 in nine provinces of Iran. We used data linkages between the cancer registries and the causes of death registry and vital statistics and active follow-up approaches to ascertain the vital status of the patients. Five-year net survival was estimated through the relative survival analysis. We applied the international cancer survival standard weights for age standardization. Five-year survival was highest for prostate cancer (74.9, 95 CI 73.0, 76.8), followed by breast (74.4, 95 CI 72.50, 76.3), bladder (70.4, 95 CI 69.0, 71.8) and cervix (65.2, 95 CI 60.5, 69.6). Survival was below 25 for cancers of the pancreas, lung, liver, stomach and esophagus. Iranian cancer patients experience a relatively poor prognosis as compared to those in high-income countries. Implementation of early detection programs and improving the quality of care are required to improve the cancer survival among Iranian patients. Further studies are needed to monitor the outcomes of cancer patients in Iran and other EMR countries. © 2022 UICC