Background: Breast cancer is the most frequent cancer in women worldwide and in Iraq. Proliferation rates of neoplastic process can be useful in predicting prognosis, aggressiveness of cancers and to guide treatment protocols in clinical practice.
Objectives: To evaluate the role of Ki67 as a proliferative marker through analysing the associations between Ki67 with the clinic-pathological parameters, hormone receptors and Her2/neu expression.
Patients and methods: Forty paraffin blocks belonging to patient with breast carcinoma and ten blocks with benign diseases were included in this retrospective cross-sectional study and used for the immunohistochemical assessment of hormone receptors, Her2/neu and Ki67.
Results: Mean age of

Background: Human Cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infects a wide range of human cells, including colonic epithelial cells that give rise to adenomas and adenocarcinomas. Persistent productive infection of tumor cells is essential for oncomodulation by HCMV.This study aimed to detect HCMV matrix protein using in situ hybridization technique (ISH) in colorectal adenocarcinoma compared to normal colon tissues, and to the presence of cytomegalovirus inclusion bodies in infected colorectal carcinomas.
Patients and methods: Twenty six of colorectal adenocarcinomas were obtained in paraffin-blocks compared to 10 normal colon specimens which were age and sex matched as control group. Detection of HCMV was obtained by in s

Background: Several factors render chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) an interesting subject for study by researchers. These include marked progress in understanding the molecular biology of normal and neoplastic lymphocytes and recent advances in molecular genetics techniques. Among molecular markers, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), have been widely studied.
Objective: The aim of the study is to evaluate the role of VEGF in the pathogenesis of CLL and its role in disease progression.
Patients, materials and methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was done on 60 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (45 males & 15 females) compared with 20 controls (anemic patients), all recr

Background: Human Cytomegalovirus ( HCMV ), lies dormant in the glial cells , and can be reactivated under conditions of inflammation and immunosuppression. In vitro, the virus can
transform cells and dysregulate many cellular pathways involved in oncogenesis. This study was conducted to detect HCMV matrix-protein mRNA using In Situ Hybridization technique in glial brain tumor tissues compared to normal brain tissues and the presence of cytomegalic inclusion bodies in brain tumor tissues.
Patients and Method: Thirty eight of glial tumor specimens were obtained in paraffin blocks compared to eight normal brain autopsy specimens which were age and sex matched with the
study group as a control group. ISH wa

Background: Molecular DNA hybridization has confirmed more than 120 different human papilloma virus (HPV) genotypes. A small group of them have high- risk oncogenic potential. Many studies have described an association of such high risk-HPV genotypes with a variety of oral lesions including squamous cell carcinoma, leukoplakia, and lichen planus. 
Materials and Methods: A total number of 42 tissue specimens, representing 27 patients with oral lichen planus and 15 apparently-healthy oral tissues, were included in this study. The molecular methods for HPV detection and genotyping were performed by in situ hybridization(ISH) using cocktailed- and specific high- risk HPV DNA probes, respectively.
Resu

Background and objectives: P53 gene mutation and deletion are among the important molecular markers linked to lung cancer. In most cases, the inactivating mutations affecting both p53 alleles are acquired in somatic cells. Less commonly, the mutations are inherited ones. The aim of the present study was to analyze the frequency of having a wild and/or a mutated p53 gene in lung cancer compared to benign lung lesions and to relate these findings to different morphological types and grades of lung cancer.
Patients, materials and methods: In this retrospective study, the histopathology blocks of 30 lung cancer cases covering the period from2002 to 2007were obtained from the archives of the histopathology sec

The aim of this study was to establish the existence and interaction of TMPRSS2 – ERG gene fusion status with clinicopathological features of prostate cancer patients. This research consisted of 123 embedded formalin-fixed tissues obtained from the prostate tumor patients. The above gene fusion is detected through the technique of fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) by means of a triple color probe. Seven samples have not been scored due to technical difficulties and 46 patients have fusion (39.6%), while the remaining (70) have not been seen with fusion. Of the 46 fusion-positive, 17 (36%) were caused by ERG-translocation, of the other 29 (63%) were caused by the interstitial segment deletion between the two genes due to the

Background: Breast cancer ranks the first among the Iraqi population since three decades and is currently forming a major public health problem being the second cause of death women. Novel management of breast cancer depends upon precise evaluation of their molecular subtypes; identified by Hormone (Estrogen and Progesterone) receptors and HER2 contents of the primary tumor.
Objective: To assess the rates of the different molecular breast cancer subtypes in the examined tissue specimens belonging to females diagnosed with breast cancer in Iraq; correlating the findings with those reported in the literature at the regional and global levels.
Patients and Methods: This retrospective study documented the findings of tissue biopsy exam

Breast cancer becomes a major threat to female health, many reports refer to a high incidence of breast cancer in Iraq; especially, in the last years. The micro RNA-370 molecules have not been reported in Iraqi cancer patients. Our objective in this study was to identify the expression of micro RNA-370 molecules in breast cancer patients as an early detection biomarker of breast tumors and detect its relation with clinicopathological characters of breast cancer patients. Fifty fresh tissue samples were collected from benign and malignant breast patients in addition to ten normal tissue samples collected as a control group, the age ranged was(19 - 77) years for patients. The miR-370 gene expression level was measured by the quantitative r