Cancer notification at a referral hospital of Kermanshah, Western Iran (2006-2009)

Impacts of some clinicopathodemography and colorectal tissues key cell cycle and mucin stabilizing molecules on the metastasis trend in colorectal cancer patients

BACKGROUND

We aimed to evaluate the various clinicopathodemographical, epidemiological, and molecular contributors to cumulatively worldwide metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) in CRC patients from a highly populated area in northeastern Iran to pinpoint metastasis risk.

METHODS

A retrospective clinical material-based cohort including a total of 6260 registered CRC patients, of whom 3829 underwent surgery, from regional university hospitals, during 2006-2016, were analyzed for the clinicopathodemographical aspects of age, sex, stage of CRC, history of smoking, type 2 diabetes (T2D), hypertension, body mass index (BMI), familial/occupational status, post-surgery survival period and mRNA/protein expression of mucin stabilizer (B3GALNT2), mucin I (MUC1), key cell cycle molecules (i.e., P53 and Ki67), and MMR-related genes. Factors were set to estimate the risk of metastatic CRC and mortality.

RESULTS

Predominant adenocarcinomatous CRCs were found in colon. Post-surgery survival period of metastatic CRC patients was remarkably longer in patients aged > 50 compared to those aged < 50 years, and worse in females than males. B3GALNT2high, MUChigh, P53low, and Ki67high mRNA/protein expression in the metastatic stage III CRC along with T2D and hypertension were associated with increased metastasis/mortality, with more worsening in males, older, BMI > 25, urban residing, and employed individuals, indicative of non-genetic attributable factors.

CONCLUSION

B3GALNT2, MUC1, and "Ki67" can be used as promising biomarkers for prognosis and early diagnosis of increasingly/predominantly non-genetic/environmental originated metastatic CRCs.

Variants of Genes Involved in Metabolism of Folate Among Patients with Breast Cancer: Association of TYMS 3R Allele with Susceptibility to Breast Cancer and Metastasis

Background & Objective:

Breast cancer (BC) is known to be the most prevalent cancer among women. One-carbon metabolism disturbance might play an important role in the etiology of BC. The present study aimed to investigate the thymidylate synthase (TYMS), 5-methyltetrahydrofolate-homocysteine methyltransferase (MTR), and methionine synthase reductase (MTRR) variants as good candidates for studying the role of genetic variants of folate metabolizing enzymes in the risk of BC.

Methods:

The present case-control study includes 100 BC patients and 141 healthy females. The TYMS 2R/3R (rs34743033), MTR c.2756A>G (rs1805087), and MTRR c.66A>G (rs1801394) variants were detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), and a designed amplification-refractory mutation system (ARMS) method, respectively.

Results:

The 3R allele of TYMS enhanced the risk of BC by 2.84-fold (P<0.001). In the presence of TYMS 3R/3R, compared to TYMS 2R/3R, there was a trend toward enhancing the risk of metastasis by 4.15-fold (95% CI: 0.96-17.85, P=0.055). The frequencies of MTR c.2756A>G and MTRR c.66A>G variants were not significantly different among patients and controls.

Conclusion:

We observed that the TYMS 3R is a risk allele for susceptibility to BC and this allele may increase the risk of metastasis in BC patients. .

Bladder Cancer in Iran: An Epidemiological Review

PURPOSE

Bladder cancer is the sixth most common cancer in Iran. Information about the epidemiological situation of the disease and its risk factors is necessary for conducting a planning program to reduce the disease. This study is conducted with the aim of evaluating the epidemiological features of bladder cancer in Iran.

METHODS

This is a systematic review of the published articles in both Persian and English in international and national journals during the years 2000-2019 with key words of Iran and bladder cancer. Articles were selected from the national information database (SID, Magiran) and international databases (PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science). Articles related to the epidemiological aspects of the disease, including incidence, prevalence, mortality, and risk factors, were evaluated.

RESULTS

The incidence rate of bladder cancer was about 1.6-115; cumulative survival rate was 0.95, mortality rate was 0.5-0.84 and its prevalence in the Iranian population was between 4.10% and 12.8%. The risk of developing malignancy in major risk factor groups, including smoking and opium, was 6.2 (2.04-18.7), increases in protein and animal fat consumption were about 5- and 19-times higher than in the general population, respectively. In terms of occupational exposure, bus and heavy truck drivers were 11.3 (1.3-92.05) more at risk than others.

CONCLUSION

Regarding the increasing trend of this disease, changes in lifestyle to reduce risk factors can be effective in decreasing the incidence and mortality rate of this malignancy.

iRGD as a tumor‑penetrating peptide for cancer therapy (Review)

As a tumor-targeting and ‑penetrating peptide, iRGD binds to αv integrins and neuropilin‑1 receptors, which are expressed at high levels on tumor cells and the surfaces of vasculature. Subsequently, iRGD penetrates deep into the tumor parenchyma with antitumor drugs, imaging agents, immune modulators and biological products. These substances are either chemically linked to the peptide or co‑injected with the peptide. The iRGD peptide can be readily synthesized, exhibits significantly improved penetration, compared with traditional peptides, and can effectively inhibit tumor metastasis. Therefore, the peptide is now used widely for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. However, whether the peptide is able to promote the entry of drugs into non‑targeted cells remains to be fully elucidated. In this review, an overview of iRGD is presented, focusing on its identification, mechanism of action and previous studies on its roles in various types of cancer. Studies in previous years have demonstrated the potential of the iRGD protein for tumors diagnosis and targeted treatment, which warrants further investigation.