Relationship between Phosphatase and Tensin Gene Expression and Clinicopathologic Features of Breast Cancer in Patients who Underwent Biopsy or Breast Surgery

Background: Phosphatase and tensin (PTEN) gene is a tumor suppressor gene on chromosome 10q23 that is composed of 11 exons. Several studies have shown that loss of PTEN function is a common occurrence in breast cancer in particular in triple negative type, and it is significantly associated with age and higher stage of cancer. In this study, the expression of this gene in malignant breast cancer tissue samples and their correlation with clinicopathologic parameters was studied.Methods: In this retrospective study, 65 malignant tissue samples were chosen for immunohistochemistry (IHC) test. Other information about clinicopathologic features were collected from pathology reports and patients’ medical records. IHC on the selected paraffin blocks was performed, and the collected data were analyzed using SPSS software and chi-square test. P < 0.0500 was considered statistically significant.Results: PTEN expression rate in malignant breast tissue was 50.8% of the cases (33 out of 65 samples). Lack of PTEN expression had significant correlation with involvement of the lymph node sent by the sample, vascular or perineural invasion, metastasis and chemotherapy background, spontaneous malignancy presence, familial history, negative progesterone receptor, negative estrogen receptor, and positive her2/neu. No relationship was observed between the expression of PTEN with patients’ age, tumor size, age group of the patients after categorization into two groups of under 50 years and over 50 years, lesion location (left or right breast), and tumor grade.Conclusions: The results showed PTEN loss as a frequent event in breast cancer that is closely associated with progression and poor prognosis. PTEN loss might predict more aggressive behavior and worse outcomes in patients with breast cancer

Seroprevalence of Hepatitis a in Hemodialysis Patient Candidate for Kidney Transplant Younger Than Forty Years

Background: Hepatitis A is a common infection during childhood, especially in developing countries. It can cause severe complications in immunocompromised patients. Due to the increasing number of kidney transplants in the country and epidemiologic shift of HAV which was observed in previous studies, we're going to evaluate the seroprevalence of hepatitis A in hemodialysis patients less than forty years serving kidney transplant candidates to follow vaccination policy for them.Materials and Methods: In a cross sectional study during 2014-2015 hepatitis A antibody levels in hemodialysis patients less than forty years in kidney transplant candidates examined in 12 hospitals in Tehran, Iran. Their serums were tested for anti HAV IgM and IgG by ELISA kits.Results: Hepatitis A virus antibody was positive in 66 (72.5%) of 91 patients. The prevalence of HAV was 0% at the range of younger than 20 and 45% in under 25 years age group. This significantly increased prevalence by increasing the age, and there was according to epidemiological shifts which were shown in other studies.Conclusion: Due to the availability of vaccine and hepatitis severe complications in immunocompromised individuals, as well as a low prevalence of positive serology in individuals under 25 years, it seems the check of antibodies in patients undergoing kidney transplantation and vaccination in seronegative persons is a logical