Significance of some apoptotic and inflammatory markers in the early diagnosis of Egyptian breast cancer patients / Samer Atef Tadros Fahim ; Supervised Tarek M. K. Motawi , Nadia I. Zakhary , Hebatallah A. Darwish

Thesis (Ph.D.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Pharmacy - Department of Biochemistry

Breast cancer is one of the most relevant malignancies among women. Early diagnosis and accurate staging of breast cancer is important for the selection of an appropriate therapeutic strategy and achieving a better outcome. This study aimed to explore the significance of some apoptotic and inflammatory serum biomarkers in the early diagnosis and staging of Egyptian breast cancer patients. Moreover, it aimed to explore the potential association between survivin promotor gene (BIRC5) -31G/C single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) (rs9904341) and its impact on breast cancer risk and serum survivin levels in these patients. A total of 135 female patients with physically and pathologically confirmed breast cancer and 40 unrelated controls as well as 40 patients with benign breast mass were recruited from the early detection unit at the National Cancer Institute, Cairo University. Serum survivin, CEACAM1, resistin and visfatin were measured by ELISA, while genotyping for survivin gene promotor was performed using allelic discrimination probes by qPCR. Elevated serum levels of survivin, CEACAM1, resistin and visfatin were observed in different stages of breast cancer patients when compared with normal controls and benign breast lesions. In addition, there was gradual increment in the serum levels of survivin and visfatin in different stages of breast cancer patients. Also, the minor allele C of -31G/C survivin SNP was more frequent in breast cancer patients (19.3%) compared to the control group (7.5%). Furthermore, subjects with GC+CC genotype were at increased risk of breast cancer compared with the GG genotype, relative to both control and benign groups. Moreover, those patients exhibited higher serum levels of survivin compared to GG genotype. In view of that, the studied biomarkers could be useful in the early diagnosis of breast cancer displaying a pivotal role in its pathogenesis. Additionally, serum visfatin and survivin can be used in staging of breast cancer. Eventually, genetic variation in -31G/C of survivin gene may contribute to the disposition of breast cancer in Egyptian population

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