Introduction: Breast cancer is the most common cancer and the major cause of cancer related deaths among Iraqi women. Due to the relatively late detection of breast cancer, the majority of the patients are still treated by modified radicle mastectomy. Aim: To assess the time lag between diagnosis of breast cancer and mastectomy among Iraqi patients; correlating the findings with other clinicopathological characteristics of the disease. Patients and methods: This retrospective study enrolled 226 Iraqi female patients who were diagnosed with breast cancer. Data were registered on the exact time period between signing the histopathological report and the surgical treatment. Other recorded variables included the age of the patients, their level of education, number of parity, age at first child birth, family history and the stage at breast cancer presentation. Results: In general, 51% of the patients were under the age of 50 years, 93.8% were married, 10.6% were illiterate, only 1.8% were nulliparous while positive family history of cancer was noted in 25.6%. Overall 67.7%, 87.6%, and 92% underwent mastectomy during the first month, two months and three months after diagnosis respectively. Only 3.1% were operated upon after one year. With the exception of the age at first childbirth, there was no significant correlation between the waiting times to surgery and the patients’ age, education, number of parity, family history and the stage at breast cancer detection. Conclusions: The percentage of the patients who had surgical treatment during the first month following diagnosis seems rather satisfactory when compared to the corresponding findings reported in similar surveys from developing and some developed countries. Strengthening public education and adopting multimodality evidenced-based management protocols are crucial steps to control the waiting times among those who have delayed mastectomies.
Abstract Background: The human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2) proto-oncogene is overexpressed or amplified in approximately 15%-25% of invasive breast cancers. Approximately 35% of HER2-amplified breast cancers have coamplification of the topoisomerase II-alpha (TOP2A) gene encoding an enzyme that is a major target of anthracyclines. Hence, the determination of genetic alteration (amplification or deletion) of both genes is considered as an important predictive factor that determines the response of breast cancer patients to treatment. The aims of this study are to determinate TOP2A status gene amplification in a set of Iraqi patients with breast cancer that have had an equivocal (2+) and positive HER2/neu by immunohistochemistry
... Show MoreThis study was conducted in the specialized center of endocrinology and diabetic (AlKindy hospital from June 2004 to April 2005). Sera of 80 women (include 40 diagnosed Hyperprolactinemia (HPro) and 40 healthy women as control) were used to estimate some biochemical parameters which include prolactin (PRL),total fucose (TF), total protein (TP) and protein bound fucose (PBF), and protein bound hexose (PBHex), also TP TF , TP PBF and TP PBHex ratios. A significant elevation in TP and PBHex, in sera of HPro patients compared to control was found while PBHex/TP ratio showed a slight non significant increase in sera of patients compared to control. On the other hand a significant decrease in TF, TF/TP and PBF/TP in ser
... Show MoreBackground: Impacted teeth are frequent problem and one of the most affected teeth is the maxillary canine. The early diagnosis of impacted canines by radiographic evaluation is imperative. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of impacted maxillary canines in patients attending the Oral diagnosis and Radiology clinic in College of Dentistry, University of Al-Basrah. Materials and Methods: 1280 patients attending the Oral Diagnosis and Radiology clinic in College of Dentistry University of Al-Basrah, between October 2013 and March 2015 were examined for the study. The age of the patients ranged from 15 to 55 years, with a mean age of 22.2 years. Results: The prevalence for maxillary impacted canines in all the cases was fo
... Show MoreBACKGROUND: CRC is one of the most common cancers in the world. K-ras is proto-oncogene with GTPase activity that is lost when the gene is mutated. Analysis of K-ras mutational status is very important for CRC treatment, being the most important predictors of resistance to targeted therapy. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to determine the frequency and spectrum of K-ras mutation among Iraqi patients with sporadic CRC. PATIENTS, MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study enrolled 35 cases with sporadic CRC; their clinicopathological parameters were analyzed. The FFPE blocks were used for DNA extraction; PCR amplification of K-ras gene and hybridization of allele-specific oligoprobes were performed. The assay covers 29 mutations in the K-ras gene (codons 1
... Show MoreThis study aimed to evaluate the effect of the COVID-19 outbreak on emergencies and pain among orthodontic patients attending a teaching hospital. The study was conducted among orthodontic patients receiving active orthodontic treatment or in a retention period at the College of Dentistry, University of Baghdad, Iraq. Their participation was voluntary, and they filled out an Arabic-translated questionnaire. The survey included general information, orthodontic problems, and a numerical rating scale for pain assessment. We used descriptive and inferential statistics (frequencies and intersecting frequencies), chi-square test and linear regression. Out of 75 orthodontic patients, only 54 (15 males and 39 females) were included in the s
... Show MoreBackground: Imaging techniques play a very important role in the specialty of endodontic. The ultrasonographic technique is non-expensive procedure, safe, and reproducible. The aim of the study was to determine the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of ultrasound and color Doppler ultrasonography in evaluation of periapical lesions (cyst, granuloma, mixed lesion “cyst within graulomas mass”, and abscess. Subject, Material and method: The sample consists of prospective study for 64 Iraqi participants who attended Karbalaa Specialized Center for Dentistry (males & females). Those patients were diagnosed clinically and radiographically as having periapical lesions of dental origin. They were examined by real time ultrasound and color
... Show MoreBackground: Oral tumors are one of the most challenging
tumors regarding their good prognosis in early diagnosis and
very difficult control in advancing stages.
Objectives: To study the prevalence, types and clinical
presentation of oral tumors in comparison to other oral
lesions among patients attending ENT clinic.
Al-Kindy Col Med J 2008 Vol.5(1) Original Article 11
Methods: This study included 534 patients with different
oral complains attending ENT clinics in AI-Yarmouk
Teaching Hospital, and AI-Kindy Teaching Hospital -
Baghdad, in the period from 1st jan1999 till 31th des 2006 (8
years interval).
Results: The results of this study showed that the prevalence
of malignant lesions was 13.5% (72 o
Background: An important factor influencing duration of breastfeeding is mother’s employment status. The nutritional, immunological, psychological and economic benefits of breastfeeding are well documented. Both UNICEF and the World Health Organization recommend mothers should breastfeed exclusively for at least 6 months.
Objectives: To determine how the employment and the employment variables (type of work, time of return to work and hours of work) influence the breast feeding practices.
Methods: A cross- sectional study was carried out on a sample of 200 employed mothers who had their last child been completed at least tow years. Data were collected using a questionnaire form. It was carried out during the period from 1st of Ap
Background: Orofacial cleft is the most common craniofacial birth defect and the fourth most common congenital malformation in humans that have an effect on oral health in addition to nutrient intake affected in those children. This research aims to investigate gingival condition, dental caries experience and nutritional status among children with orofacial cleft and compare them with normal children. Materials and methods: The study group included 36 children with an age ranged (4-9) years of orofacial cleft. The control group included 37 children matched the control group in age and gender. Gingival condition measured by Gingival Index (Löe and Silness, 1963), while dental caries status was measured by (D1-4MFs/d1-4mfs) index according
... Show MoreThe development of better tools for diagnosis and more accurate prognosis of cancer includes the search for biomarkers; molecules whose presence, absence or change in quantity or structure is associated with a particular tumour or prognosis/therapeutic outcome. While biomarkers need not be functionally relevant, if cell survival, then they could also provide new targets for therapeutic drugs. In recent years attention has been applied to a group of proteins known as cancer testis antigens (CT antigens) [1]. These proteins are products of genes whose expression was normally confined to the testis, yet they are expressed in tumour cells. CT genes are bound to serve a wide array of roles in the testes, which have many highly differentiated cel
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