Basic & Clinical Cancer Research

Expression of CD123 in B-acute lymphoblastic leukaemia as a predictor of Bcr/Abl rearrangement and disease relapse

Bhaumik Prajapati — 2025-05-25

Introduction: CD123 is the alpha chain of the interleukin 3 receptor (IL-3R) and is generally expressed on hematopoietic progenitor cells, monocytes, B lymphocytes, and endothelial cells. Leukemic stem cells can be detected using CD123, and their usefulness for measuring residual disease and potential involvement in disease re- lapse is being evaluated. It also regulates the growth, proliferation, survival, and differentiation of hematopoietic cells, along with immunity and inflammatory re- sponse. Materials and

Methods: Bone marrow or peripheral blood from 50 B-Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (B-ALL) patients were enrolled in the study. CD123 ex- pression was studied by the flow cytometry technique and correlated with clinical and hematological parameters, as well as BCR-ABL status, MRD status, and disease status.

Results: CD123 expression was found positive in 38% of patients. No significant cor- relation of CD123 expression with clinical and hematological parameters was ob- served. A significantly higher incidence of CD123 expression was noted in patients with BCR-ABL fusion (70%), relapse patients (67%), and MRD patients (67%).

Conclusion: CD123 can be used to predict BCR-ABL status in B-ALL patients, and it has a potential role in recognizing high-risk relapse and helps to scrutinize high-risk B-ALL patients who benefited from aggressive chemotherapy. Further, higher ex- pression of CD123 in MRD patients can be used to evaluate minimal residual disease in follow-up B-ALL patients.

Diagnostic Accuracy of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology for Breast Lump by Yokohama System for Reporting and Its Correlation with Histomorphology

Nikita Taur — 2025-05-25

Background: The International Academy of Cytology Yokohama System has cre-ated a standardized method of describing breast cytology by grouping them into 5categories: inadequate, benign, atypical, suspicious, and malignant. To validate thelikelihood of cancer in the various categories, several investigations have been under-taken at various institutions as a mandate. Aim: The main objective of the researchis to identify the accuracy of fine needle aspiration cytology for breast lumps by theYokohama system for reporting and its correlation with histopathology.

Methodology: The present study was a retrospective study performed over 8 months.The Yokohama system performs FANCs for breast lumps. Whenever accessible, his-topathological diagnoses were also retrieved. Statistical Analysis Used: Sensitivity,specificity, PPV, NPV, and diagnostic accuracy were estimated using a histologicaldiagnosis as the gold standard for each of the five categories.

Results: Out of 200 cases 106 had histopathological concordance. Five categories- insufficient, benign, atypical, suspicious, and malignant of the IAC Yokohama sys-tem were 1.00%, 62.50%, 4.50%, 1.50%, and 30.50%, Category1(1%), category2 (62.5%),category3 (4.5%), category4(1.5%), category5 (30.5%). When malignant, suspicious,and unusual cases were taken into account as positive test findings, the highest levelof sensitivity (90.60%) was attained. The maximum specificity (100%) was seen whenonly malignant patients were taken into account as positive test findings, but thehighest diagnostic accuracy (96.22%) was shown when the malignant and suspectcategories were taken into account as positive test results.

Conclusion: FNAC using the Yokohama system for reporting is an accurate diagnos-tic tool for breast lumps. The system provides a standardized framework for reportingFNAC findings, and studies have reported high sensitivity and specificity rates fordiagnosing breast lumps using FNAC. Therefore, FNAC can be used with histomor-phology to ensure accurate diagnosis and appropriate management of breast lumps

Epigenetic mechanisms associated with progression, prognosis, and new treatment strategies for metastatic cervical squamous cell carcinoma: Literature review

BJosué Mondragón-Morales — 2025-05-25

Background: In the 21st century, the main cause of death in both sexes worldwide are cardiovascular diseases, in second place are neoplasms. In the case of women, the fourth cause of mortality is breast cancer, despite the screening. This study aims to understand the epigenetic mechanisms associated with cervical cancer progression and metastasis, considering its correlation with poor prognosis.

Material and Methods: To prepare the present article, the search was done on plat- forms PubMed and Google Scholar, the search was carried out using the following medical subject headings (MeSH) in the search engine: “metastatic cervical cancer”, “cervical cancer epigenetics”, “cervical cancer genetics”, “cervical cancer mirnas”, “cervical cancer lncrnas”, “cervical cancer clinical trials” and “metastatic cervical cancer hpv”, in combination with boolean connectors ‘AND’ and ‘OR’. A total of 114 articles were reviewed, published between 1989 and 2022.

Results and conclusions: It is essential to understand and know the epigenetic mechanisms associated with cervical cancer pathogenesis and progression, to create new targeted treatment schemes for metastatic cervical cancer to reduce the mortal- ity rate and increase disease-free survival.

A Case Series of Immigrant Cancer Patients in Iran

Zoha Shaka — 2025-05-25

Background: Iran has recently experienced a recent influx of immigrants, mainly from neighboring countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq. We report a case series of immigrant cancer patients who were admitted at Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex in Tehran.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cross-series using the medical records of immigrant patients diagnosed with cancer from March 2013 to March 2023. We per- formed descriptive analyses of the immigrant patients, including gender, age, country of birth, type of cancer, treatment courses, and metastasis status.

Results: The total number of immigrant cancer patients was 349, with 51.86% being fe- male and 48.14% male. Among these patients, 8 (2.30%) were children (under 14 years old), 42 (12.07%) were young adults (aged 15-24), and 297 (85.59%) were older than 25 years. Most immigrants in the study were from Afghanistan (95.13%), followed by Iraq (4.58%). Additionally, 8.88% of the immigrants were second-generation, born in Iran. The most common cancer types were breast (32.04%), hematological (12.15%), ovar- ian (11.05%), and colorectal (7.18%) cancers in women and hematological (17.86%), colorectal (10.71%), musculoskeletal (10.12%), and skin (10.12%) cancers in men.

Conclusion: This study is the first description of cancer disparity among immigrants in Iran. The results of this study can be used for cancer surveillance and promoting care among immigrant populations in Iran

The Role of microRNA-31 in the Initiation and rogression of Colorectal Cancer

Mohammad Kordkatouli — 2025-05-25

miR-31 is critically involved in the initiation and progression of CRC by regulating multiple pathways essential for tumorigenesis and influencing various cellular func- tions, such as proliferation, apoptosis, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), metastasis, and chemoresistance. miR-31 also impacts EMT-related transcription factors such as ZEB1, SNAIL, and TWIST, which further facilitate the shift to a mes- enchymal state, leading to increased invasiveness and metastatic spread of CRC cells, commonly to organs like the liver, which worsens patient prognosis in the context of apoptosis, miR-31 inhibits pro-apoptotic factors such as BAX and Caspase-3, re- ducing programmed cell death and allowing cancer cells to survive longer this an- ti-apoptotic influence is essential for miR-31’s role in chemoresistance, as it enables cancer cells to evade the cytotoxic effects of chemotherapy. Interestingly, despite its primarily oncogenic role, miR-31 has shown context-dependent tumor-suppressive properties in specific genetic or environmental conditions under certain conditions, miR-31 may target oncogenes or reduce the activity of tumor-promoting pathways, although these instances are relatively rare and context-specific, influenced by fac- tors like genetic mutations clinically, miR-31’s expression level is correlated with CRC stage, metastatic capacity, and patient prognosis, indicating its potential utility as a biomarker for risk assessment and prognosis. Elevated miR-31 levels are asso- ciated with advanced CRC stages, increased tumor aggressiveness, and poor over- all survival, underscoring its relevance in patient management ongoing research is investigating miR-31 inhibitors as a therapeutic option to counteract its oncogenic effects and improve treatment responses by sensitizing CRC cells to chemotherapeu- tic-induced apoptosis.

Bioinformatics screening of therapeutic targets in chemoresistance human colon cancer HCT8 cell line

Zohreh Jahanafrooz — 2025-05-25

Background: Chemoresistance is still one of the main challenges in treatment of cancers, including colon adenocarcinoma (COAD). COAD is a common cancer with a high mortality. The goal of this study was to identify and evaluate the differentially ex- pressed mRNAs (DEmRNAs) associated with both 5-fluorouracil (5-Fu) and cisplatin (DDP) resistance in human COAD cell line.

Methods: Common DEmRNAs, DEmiRNAs, and DElncRNAs were obtained from the gene expression profile GSE173606 between acquired two chemoresistance (5-Fu and DDP) and sensitive HCT8 cells. PPI network of overlapped DEmRNAs was obtained based on STRING database and Cytoscape and Gephi software. Degree algorithm in CytoHubba was used to determine hub genes. The hub genes were evaluated in TIM- ER2.0 and GEPIA databases. miRTarBase database was used to find DEmiRNAs which target the common DEmRNAs. Then DElncRNAs which have interaction with the se- lected DEmiRNAs were obtained from RNAInter database. LncRNA-miRNA-mRNA competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network visualized using Cytoscape software.

Results: A high number of common DEmRNAs (about 1780) in chemoresistance HCT8 cells were identified. TIMER2.0 database showed that the expression of high-ex- pressed hub genes, including EGFR, TGFB1, ESR1, ICAM1, PECAM1, CAV1, and CCL5 has significant positive correlations with tumor infiltration of cancer-associated fibroblasts in COAD. CeRNA networks included the low-expressed mRNAs (as targets of upregulated miR-675-3p, miR-6084, and miR-1182) whose expression is also down- regulated in COAD tissues based on GEPIA database. MDM2 (as a target of downregu- lated miR-4635 and miR-4306 in the ceRNA network) was an upregulated gene in both chemoresistance cells and COAD tumor tissues. RNAactDrug database confirmed the association of the high expression of four mRNAs of the ceRNA network (i.e., EFNB2, F2RL2, FLT1, and ADGRF1) with decreased drug sensitivity of DDP.

Conclusion: The results of this study can offer therapeutic targets. For example, in- hibition of CCL5, oncogenic miR-675-3p, and MDM2 might be a good choice for gene targeted therapy to overcome the multi-drug resistance in COAD. Moreover, it can pro- vide multiple mRNAs and miRNAs for predicting chemoresistance COAD.

Impact of Radiotherapy on Electrolyte and Hematological Parameters in Prostate Cancer: Curative vs. Palliative Groups

Aliza Mikaeel Mustafa — 2025-05-25

Background: Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in men, with ra- diotherapy being a key treatment modality. However, radiotherapy often leads to he- matological and electrolyte imbalances, adversely impacting patient outcomes.

Objective: To assess the impact of radiotherapy on electrolyte levels (sodium, potas- sium, calcium, magnesium, phosphate, and chloride) and hematological parameters (leukocyte, erythrocyte, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and platelets) in prostate cancer patients. The study also compares these effects between curative and palliative treat- ment groups.

Patients and Methods: Twenty prostate cancer patients were included in the study, divided into curative (n=10) and palliative (n=10) groups. Blood samples were col- lected before and after radiotherapy, they were analyzed using the Swelab Alpha ana- lyzer, while electrolyte levels were measured with Jokoh Ex-DS and Roche Integra 400 Plus analyzers. Patients received 3DCRT and VMAT.

Results: Significant differences were observed in calcium (p = 0.018) and phosphate (p = 0.005) levels, with higher values in the curative group. Other electrolytes (mag- nesium, sodium, potassium, and chloride) showed no significant changes. Hemato- logical analysis revealed a significant decrease in white blood cells and hemoglobin in the curative group, indicating bone marrow suppression. In contrast, the pallia- tive group demonstrated stable white blood cell levels and increased platelet counts post-treatment.

Conclusion: Radiotherapy affects biochemical and hematological parameters differ- ently in curative and palliative settings. Personalized monitoring of these parameters is essential to mitigate complications and improve patient outcomes.