seyedasadollah mousavi

This study examines the impact of group emotional schema therapy on resilience and self-efficacy among cancer patients.

The research employed a quasi-experimental design with a pre-test and post-test follow-up alongside a control group. The statistical population comprised all cancer patients visiting Shariati Hospital in Tehran in 2020 (year 1399). Forty volunteer participants who met the inclusion criteria were selected through convenience sampling. After final screening, 20 individuals were randomly assigned to two experimental groups (emotion-focused schema therapy) and one control group. Participants were assessed before and after the intervention using Sherer's General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSE-17) (1982) and the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (2003). The intervention consisted of 12 online group sessions (via Skype), each lasting two and a half hours. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software version 24, employing covariance analysis methods. This study is part of a doctoral thesis in health psychology, approved on 29/09/1399 (IR.IAU.TON.REC.1399.074) at the Islamic Azad University, Tonkabon Branch.

The findings revealed that emotional schema therapy significantly improved resilience and self-efficacy in cancer patients (p < 0.01)..

Emotional schema-based therapy can serve as an effective psychological intervention to enhance resilience and self-efficacy in individuals with cancer.

Despite substantial efforts to leverage natural killer (NK) cells in cancer immunotherapy, challenges associated with limited cell numbers and sources persist. In this study, our objective is to differentiate NK cells from cord blood hematopoietic stem cells (CB-HSCs) and assess their anti-tumor effects.

Cord blood samples were obtained from pregnant women undergoing normal delivery. Mononuclear cells (MNC) were isolated by gradient centrifugation. Subsequently, HSCs were isolated using the MACs cell separation kit. The isolated HSCs were cultured in NK cell differentiation and expansion media for 21 days and 7 days, respectively. The NK cells were examined for expression of activating markers, cytokine secretion and cytolytic effects by flow cytometry, ELISA and XTT tests, respectively.

High-purity HSCs and NK cells were obtained in this study. The CB-HSCs-derived NK cells exhibited significantly higher expression of NKG2D, NKp30, NKp44 and NKp46 receptors (at day 28 of treatment) after treatment by IL-15 and IL-2, compared to the early differentiated NK cells (day 21). NK cells derived from CB-HSCs treated with the combination of IL-15 and IL-2 could robustly lyse breast cancer MCF-7 and K562 cells. Also, the obtained NK cells were able to release higher amounts of TNF-α and IFN-γ cytokines in response to tumor cell experiences.

Our findings showed that functionally active CB-HSCs-derived NK cells can be successfully generated ex vivo using a cytokine cocktail without a need for stroma for potential use in the cancer immunotherapy.

 Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) are a significant cause of mortality and morbidity in patients with hematological malignancies. Given the considerable prevalence and consequences of IFIs, hence revealing the exact cause of fungal infections, their rate, associated risk factors, and complications could contribute to reducing both financial and life costs, choosing targeted antifungal treatment, and avoiding unnecessary toxic treatments in individuals who are not suffering from mycoses.

 This prospective cross-sectional study was conducted in the first semester of 2019. All patients with hematologic malignancies (HM) admitted to Dr. Shariati Hospital were studied. Only those with probable/proven IFIs defined according to the last update of EORTC/MSG criteria were included in the study. The demographic and clinical data were recorded from the hospital information registration system using a questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software version 24.

Out of 1109 HM patients hospitalized during the study period, 67 (6.04%) IFIs were diagnosed. Of these, 57 (85.04%) were aspergillosis, 7 (10.4%) were mucormycosis, and 3 patients developed other fungal infections. Males constituted 67.2% of the entire IFI population. The mean±SD age of the samples was 43.16 ± 13.8 years. The most common type of malignancy was AML. Lung imaging showed lesions associated with fungal infections in 52 cases (77.6%), with multiple nodules as the most prevalent pattern being observed in 64.2% of cases. Sinus involvement was evidenced in the PNS CT scan of 46 (68.6%) patients. The attributable mortality rate for IFIs was 62.7%. Both the types of IFI and malignancies had no significant relationship with the outcome of patients. Central venous catheter, mucositis, and antibiotic use were the most frequent risk factors.

  IFI represents a frequent complication for HM patients with high mortality. Aspergillus species are the predominant etiology in these settings. Considering our results, in high-risk patients, manifestations of warning signs in the sinus and lungs, which would not be cleared despite receiving antibiotics, should raise the possibility of IFIs.

Cardiotoxicity, a common complication of chemotherapy, may have irreversible adverse effects on the heart. Anthracycline-based chemotherapy for breast cancer can lead to dilation-hypokinetic cardiomyopathy, eventuating in heart failure. As the primary diagnostic tool for cardiovascular toxicity, echocardiography may be essential in evaluating the heart function of such patients.

This study aimed to identify the most important echocardiography findings for proper and timely diagnosis of cardiotoxicity in patients with HER2-positive breast cancer undergoing anthracycline-based chemotherapy.

Our final analysis included 132 female patients who were HER2-positive and had breast cancer. All of these patients had one pre-chemotherapy echocardiography and at least one echocardiography after three episodes of anthracycline-based chemotherapy. The patients’ age, body mass index, and history of chemotherapy were recorded. Mean alterations from baseline echocardiography to echocardiography after three episodes of chemotherapy were calculated for all parameters evaluated. Data analysis was conducted using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences v. 26.

Significant changes were seen in three-dimensional left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF 3D), two-dimensional left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF 2D), left ventricular global circumferential strain (LVGCS), left ventricular global longitudinal strain (LVGLS), left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV), stroke volume (SV), left ventricular end-systolic volume (LVESV), right ventricular end-systolic dimension (RVESD) in patients with breast cancer (P < 0.0001). RVESD, LVESV, LVEDV, and SV significantly increased after three chemotherapy episodes, but LVEF (3D and 2D), absolute LVGCS, and absolute LVGLS fell significantly.

LVEF (3D and 2D), LVGCS, LVGLS, LVEDV, LVESV, SV, and RVESD are important echocardiography parameters in diagnosing cardiotoxicity in patients with HER2-positive breast cancer.

Cancer imposes a significant economic burden on the health system and society. Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is the third deadliest leukemia and is one of the leading health problems worldwide. The present study aimed to estimate the economic burden of AML in Iran for 2020.

In this study, we estimated a prevalence-based on the cost-of-illness of the AML in Iran. A societal perspective was considered, in which the direct costs and productivity losses with the adoption of the human capital approach in the AML cases were estimated for 2020. Moreover, in the present study, several resources including national cancer registry reports, hospital records, occupational data, and interviews with experts were cited.

Approximately 98% of patients with AML received induction therapy. The AML economic burden was $33,243,107.39. Indirect costs accounted for 60% (21,593,764.4$) of this amount, and direct medical costs and direct non-medical costs make up for 19% (6,359,380.88$) and 16% (5,289,962.11$) of this estimated economic burden, respectively

The economic burden of AML in Iran is very remarkable and due to the increasing prevalence of this disease, it is expected to increase gradually. Having insights into the costs associated with the disease provide an excellent opportunity for health policymakers and managers to effectively improve resource allocation.

 The high mortality rate of Gastric Cancer (GC) is a consequence of delayed diagnosis. The early diagnosis of GC could increase the five-year survival rate among patients. We aimed to find a panel of microRNAs (miRNA) for the detection of GC in the early stages.

 In this case-control study, we selected consistently upregulated miRNAs from the results of 12 high-throughput miRNA profiling studies in GC. In the profiling phase, the differential expressions of 13 candidate miRNAs were analyzed by quantitative reverse-transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) in two pooled RNA samples prepared from the plasma of eight GC patients and eight matched controls. In the validation phase, significantly upregulated miRNAs from the profiling phase were further evaluated in the plasma samples of 97 patients with stage I-IV gastric adenocarcinoma and 100 healthy controls.

 In the profiling phase, six miRNAs (miR-18a, 21, 25, 92a, 125b and 221) were significantly upregulated in the GC patients compared to the controls (p<0.05). However, in the validation phase, only significant up-regulation of miR-18a, 21 and 125b was confirmed (p<0.05). A panel of miR-18a/21/125b was able to detect GC patients with stage I-IV from the controls (p<0.001; AUC=0.92, sensitivity=86%; specificity=85%). In addition, the panel could distinguish the early-stage GC (I+II) from the control group with an AUC of 0.83, a sensitivity of 83%, and a specificity of 75%.

 A panel of circulating miR18a/21/125b could be suggested as a potential biomarker for the early detection of GC.

To present primary ocular manifestations in acute leukemia.

This cross-sectional descriptive hospital-based study evaluated all newly diagnosed leukemia patients of three referral hospitals of Tehran University of Medical Sciences in 2015–2016 and Mahak Hospital in Tehran in 2017. Exclusion criteria included the patients with the previous history of chemotherapy, cases of relapsing disease, and the patients with a history of ocular disease or other systemic conditions with ophthalmic manifestations.

A total of 85 patients (170 eyes) were evaluated in our study, including 29 children (34.1%) and 43 females (50.6%). The mean patient age was 37.84 ± 11.91 years in the adult group and 6.28 ± 4.70 years in the pediatric category. Ophthalmic involvement was seen in 27 patients (31.8%), including 6 pediatric patients (20.7%) and 21 adult patients (37.5%). Two patients (2.3%) had direct infiltration by leukemic cells and 76 patients (89.41%) of patients were asymptomatic. There was a correlation between ophthalmic involvement and platelet count and hemoglobin level. In patients with ocular signs, higher mortality rates were observed.

At the time of diagnosis in acute leukemia patients, complete ophthalmic evaluation including dilated fundus examination is suggested as ocular involvement in these patients is common and sometimes asymptomatic. Ophthalmic involvement in leukemic patients should be identified in a timely manner, particularly in individuals with low platelet counts and hemoglobin levels, due to the potential prognostic relevance.

Glioblastoma (GBM), the most aggressive and common form of glioma, accounts for over 13,000 death per year in the United States which indicates the importance of developing novel strategies for the treatment of this fatal malignancy. Although Arsenic trioxide (ATO) hinders the growth and survival of GBM cells, the requirement of concentrations higher than 4 μM for triggering apoptotic cell death has questioned its safety profile. Since the NF-κB signaling pathway plays a crucial role in tumorigenesis and chemo-resistance, targeting this oncogenic pathway may sensitize GBM cells to lower concentrations of ATO.

Anti-tumor effects of ATO as monotherapy and in combination with Bay 11-7082 were determined using MTT, crystal violet staining, Annexin V/PI staining and scratch assays. Quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) analysis was applied to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying the anti-tumor activity of this combination therapy.

Our results revealed that ATO and Bay 11-7082 synergistically inhibited the proliferation and survival of GBM cells. Also, it was revealed that NF-κB inhibition using Bay 11-7082 enhanced the inhibitory effects of ATO on migration of GBM cells via suppressing the expression of NF-κB target genes such as TWIST, MMP2, ICAM-1, and cathepsin B. Furthermore, combination treatment of GBM cells with ATO and Bay 11-7082 significantly induce apoptotic cell death coupled with downregulation of NF-κB anti-apoptotic target genes including Bcl-2 and IAP family members.

Altogether, these findings suggest that combination therapy with ATO and Bay 11-7082 may be a promising strategy for the treatment of GBM.

Breast cancer, as the most common malignancy among females, is a great concern for global health. Early diagnosis and advanced chemotherapy regimens have improved patients’ survival, while increasing morbidities caused by chemotherapy in the long run. Chemotherapy regimens have caused a decrease in myocardial functional, which can be detected by echocardiography.

The present study aimed to assess the decline curve in the left ventricular function parameters following chemotherapy and to compare the results among patients based on their Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor-2 (HER2) status.

This study was conducted on 427 consecutive female patients with breast cancer referred to the Cardio-Oncology Department of Rajaie Cardiovascular, Medical, and Research Center for pre-chemotherapy assessment between January 2019 and December 2020. The patients were divided into two groups based on the HER2 status. All the patients had at least one baseline (pre-chemotherapy) transthoracic echocardiography and were scheduled for four follow-up sessions: early post-anthracycline therapy and 3, 6, and 12 months following chemotherapy. Each echocardiography examination included the assessment of 2D Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction (LVEF), 3D LVEF, Global Longitudinal Strain (GLS), and Global Circumferential Strain (GCS). Linear mixed-effects models were utilized and the results were compared within and between the study groups. The R Project for Statistical Computing was used for data analysis.

The results revealed significant changes in the means of 2D LVEF, 3D LVEF, GLS, and GCS during the 12 months of follow-up (t = -27.04, -37.15, -33.3, and -21.5, respectively; P < 0.001). Besides, the decline was more prominent in the HER2 positive patients (t = -19.86, -15.35, -10.8, and -9.6, respectively; P < 0.001).

The study results revealed a significant decline in the LV function parameters including 2D LVEF, 3D LVEF, GLS, and GCS following chemotherapy with anthracycline. This decline was more prominent in the HER2 positive patients who underwent Herceptin treatment. These results showed that the use of cardioprotective agents might lower the rate of decline in LV function parameters.

Recent advances in the early detection and management of breast cancer have conferred longer patient survival. Breast irradiation-induced cardiotoxicity has been associated with a decrease in the echocardiographic markers of myocardial function and an increase in cardiac mortality.

This study aimed to determine the cardiac effects of radiotherapy on patients with breast cancer based on cancer laterality.

The present study assessed the records of 72 consecutive women with breast cancer who were referred to the Cardio-Oncology Department of Rajaie Cardiovascular Medical and Research Center between April 2017 and September 2020 and had baseline echocardiographic examinations and at least one follow-up echocardiographic examination within the first year of the initial examination. The patients were divided into left- and right-sided breast cancer groups to compare the results. The two groups were compared regarding the means of 2D Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction (LVEF), 3D LVEF, Global Longitudinal Strain (GLS), and Global Circumferential Strain (GCS) before and after radiotherapy. Analysis of Covariance (one-way ANCOVA) was used to compare the results (alpha = 0.05). All analyses were carried out using the SPSS software, version 26.

The changes in the means of 2D LVEF, 3D LVEF, GLS, and GCS were statistically significant among all the patients irrespective of cancer laterality (P < 0.001, P < 0.001, P = 0.001, and P = 0.002, respectively). However, no significant differences were observed between the left- and right-sided breast cancer groups vis-à-vis the means of 2D LVEF, 3D LVEF, GLS, and GCS (P = 0.44, P = 0.65, P = 0.21, and P = 0.25, respectively).

The study results showed significant declines in the means of 2D LVEF, 3D LVEF, GLS, and GCS following radiotherapy. The patients with right-sided breast cancer exhibited a significant decrease in all the mentioned measures, whereas those with left-sided breast cancer showed no significant decline in post-radiotherapy speckletracking parameters. In addition, comparison of the patients with left- and right-sided breast cancers revealed no significant difference in the echocardiographic parameters of cardiotoxicity regarding cancer laterality.

At present, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the only curative treatment for β thalassemic patients. Conventional myeloablative stem cell transplantation is associated with significant morbidity and mortality, and non-myeloablative stem cell transplantation is associated with high graft failure rate. Some modification in this treatment approach can result in successful transplantation in thalassemic patients.
Two successful Fludarabine - based non-myeloablative stem cell transplantation in two Class III β thalassemic patients are reported here. The first patient was a 14-year old girl that developed rapid engraftment and full Chimerism after rapid tapering of cyclosporine as graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis drug according to our protocol. Another patient was a 24-year old female patient that developed cyclosporine toxicity, and early tapering of cyclosporine helped for rapid engraftment and successful transplantation.After these two successful experiments in non-myeloablative peripheral blood stem cell transplantation for our class III β thalassemic patients, we concluded that Fludarabine-based nonmyeloablative stem cell transplantation with adequate number of stem cells at the time of transplantation and rapid tapering of GVHD prophylaxis drugs after transplantation can potentially help for rapid engraftment and successful stem cell transplantation in high risk β-thalassemic patients.

Most of Gastric Cancer (GC) patients are diagnosed at an advanced stage with poor prognosis. Hypermethylations of several tumor suppressor genes in cell-free DNA of GC patients have been previously reported. In this study, an attempt was made to investigate the methylation status of P16, RASSF1A, RPRM, and RUNX3 and their potentials for early diagnosis of GC.

Methylation status of the four tumor suppressor genes in 96 plasma samples from histopathologically confirmed gastric adenocarcinoma patients (Stage I-IV) and 88 healthy controls was determined using methylation-specific PCR method. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed and Area Under the Curve (AUC) was calculated. Two tailed p<0.05 were considered statistically significant.

Methylated P16, RASSF1A, RPRM, and RUNX3 were significantly higher in the GC patients (41.7, 33.3, 66.7, and 58.3%) compared to the controls (15.9, 0.0, 6.8, and 4.5%), respectively (p<0.001). Stratification of patients showed that RPRM (AUC: 0.70, Sensitivity: 0.47, Specificity: 0.93, and p<0.001) and RUNX3 (AUC: 0.77, Sensitivity: 0.59, Specificity: 0.95, and p<0.001) had the highest performances in detection of early-stage (I+II) GC. The combined methylation of RPRM and RUNX3 in detection of early-stage GC had a higher AUC of 0.88 (SE=0.042; 95% CI:0.793–0.957; p<0.001), higher sensitivity of 0.82 and reduced specificity of 0.89.

Methylation analysis of RPRM and RUNX3 in circulating cell free-DNA of plasma could be suggested as a potential biomarker for detection of GC in early-stages.

Zinc-finger Enhancer Binding protein (ZEB1) acts as a transcription factor to promote cancer progression through regulating Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition (EMT). It is well-known that ZEB1 mRNA expression is directly induced by both Estrogen Receptor (ER) and Progesterone Receptor (PR). Moreover, Androgen Receptor (AR) and PR could bind to the same regulatory element. Since it has been shown that AR overexpresses in Gastric Cancer (GC) as a male-predominant tumor, the goal of this study was to evaluate whether AR could regulate ZEB1 expression in GC.

The expression profile of ZEB1 in 60 fresh GC and adjacent non-tumor tissues and 50 normal gastric specimens was assessed by qRT-PCR, and the association of ZEB1 expression with clinicopathological features was investigated. Furthermore, possible correlation between ZEB1 and AR was evaluated to elucidate a novel prognostic marker using Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression model. Finally, molecular interaction of ZEB1 and AR was assessed using a potent AR antagonist in GC cells.

Among GC patients, 70.2% (40/57) overexpressed ZEB1 and 64.91% (37/57) overexpressed AR relative to normal gastric tissues. ZEB1 overexpression was significantly correlated with the AR overexpression in GC patients. Moreover, ZEB1 overexpression was remarkably associated with lower overall survival; however, it was not an independent prognostic factor. Evidence shows that simultaneous evaluation of ZEB1 and AR expression could independently predict survival of GC patients (HR= 2.193, p=0.047).

These findings have clinical importance suggesting simultaneous evaluation of ZEB1 and AR expression as a potential prognostic marker. Moreover, AR may regulate ZEB1 expression in GC cells proposing a possible promising targeted therapy for GC patients.

The present study investigated the patients with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia in chronic phase (CP-CML) who had beenon the first- line Imatinib Mesylate (IM) therapy for a period of 84 months.

This retrospective study was conducted in 295 newly-diagnosed CP-CML patients(age >18 years)who were admitted to the Hematology, Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation Research Center, Shariati Hospital, Tehran during 1 January 2009 to 30 December 2016. Response to treatment was evaluated by molecular response assessment. Rates of IM dose adjustment, switching to another drug therapy, Progression to Accelerate Phase (AP) and Blastic Crisis (BC) and long-term outcomes included Overall Survival (OS) and Progression Free Survival (PFS) were assesed.

Patients’ average age was 41.7 years, and 52.9% were male. 44.4% of patients at the month 18 achieved Major Molecular Response (MMR). Progression to AP/BC occurred in 26 patients during 84 months, and the estimated rate of OS and PFS were 71.83 and 74.48, respectively. Among the patients who didn’t achieve MMR at month 18 , 61 patients were treated with IM ( 400 mg /day), and then after month 18, 24(39.3%) of whom  achieved MMR. Dose adjustments occurred in 60 patients (20.33%). IM dose increases were observed in 53 patients who didn’t achive optimal response to imatinib or loss of optimal response. IM dose decreases were observed in 7 patients. 25 (8.47%)  patients were switched to a different Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor (TKI). Most of TKI changes(n=21) happened in patients who didn’t achieve optimal response to IM and for the 4 patients TKI changes were owing to adverse events of IM. Among the patients undergoing change in treatment, 24(43.75%) patient achieved MMR.

Our data showed the high effectiveness of the change in the treatment of IM-resistant condition. Moreover, our finding suggests that imatinib be effective in Iranian patients after a long period of time compared to the referenced studies.

It is well-known that Aurora kinase A (AURKA) shows oncogenic properties in various tumor types including gastric cancer (GC). Moreover, previous studies have demonstrated that AURKA has a specific androgen receptor (AR) binding site in its promoter; thus, it could be regulated by AR. Since it has been shown that AR overexpresses in gastric cancer (GC) as a male-predominant tumor, the goal of this study was to evaluate the association between AR and AURKA and its prognostic value in GC patients.

We assessed the expression profile of AURKA in 60 fresh GC and adjacent non-tumor tissues and 50 normal gastric specimen by qRT-PCR, and investigated the association of AURKA expression with clinicopathological features. Furthermore, we evaluated possible correlation between AURKA and AR to elucidate a novel prognostic marker using Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression model.

Among GC patients, 65% (39/60) overexpressed AURKA relative to normal gastric tissues. AURKA overexpression was significantly correlated with the AR overexpression in GC patients. Although AURKA expression alone was not remarkably associated with poor outcome, we provided some evidence that combined evaluation of AURKA and AR expression could independently predict survival of GC patients adjusted for other variables (HR=1.7, CI=1.314-3.833 p=0.042).

These results indicate that AR and AURKA may crosstalk to promote GC progression. Our findings have clinical importance because they suggest simultaneous assessment of AURKA and AR expression as a novel potential prognostic marker.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer and the fourth leading cause of death in the world, . Primary prevention of CRC is important, However even in people involved with cancer, there is insufficient knowledge of cancer screening.

in a comparative method two groups of people over 40 years of age who had been referred to the oncology clinics of Shariati Hospital were studied. Group 1: First-degree relatives of people with CRC. Group 2: First-degree relatives of people with other cancers. The subjects were selected via random sampling.

300 people were included in this study. None of the subjects who had a family history of non-CRC (control group) have never been screened for this cancer, but 15 (10%) of those who had a history of CRC in the first-degree relatives underwent screening in the past.

People with a family history of colorectal cancer have more been more aware of necessity for CRC screening than those without a family history, however this knowledge has not led to partake in any screening method.

The study attempts to assess the relationship between chimerism analysis using polymerase chain reaction of short tandem repeat (STR) and the incidence of chronic graft versus host disease (GvHD) as well as survival.
The retrospective cohort included all patients who received allo-HSCT between 2005 to 2013. Data collected by day 흍 were reviewed in terms of the incidence of chronic GvHD and survival. Chimerism was evaluated for whole blood, T-cell and PMN cells on days 15, 30 and 60, respectively using polymerase chain reaction of short tandem repeat (STR).
Forty (69%) patients developed chronic GvHD, 11 (19%) relapsed and 22 (39.7%) died during the study. There was a significant relationship between chronic GvHD and chimerism analysis including whole blood on day 60 (P=0.001), PMN on day 60 (p= 0.05) and T-cell on days 15 (p=0.028), 30(p=0.01) and 60 (p=0.004). Patients with chronic GvHD showed a long-term survival as compared with those without chronic GvHD (P=0.0013).
Conducting continuous analysis of chimerism provides an opportunity to initiate immediate measures to prevent complications.

Hemorrhagic cystitis (HC) is one of the most challenging complications in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Estrogen is one of the suggested treatments for controlling this problem.
Subjects and We performed a randomized case-control study to evaluate the efficacy of oral conjugated estrogen on HC management in 56 HSCT patients. Patients were randomly assigned to the drug group (received 6.25 mg conjugated estrogen oral tablets in a daily single dose during hematuria period) or control group.
The median time to complete response was 36 and 24 days in the drug and control group, respectively. The median time of down stage was 24 days in the drug group and 12 days in control group. Adjusted for HC grades, the relative risk of complete response for patients in control group was 1.613 times more than that of patients in drug group; nevertheless, not significant (p=0.122).
Our study did not show any benefit in use of oral conjugated estrogen in the management of HC.

This review reports the current results of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) in patients who had received transplantation in the Hematology-Oncology and SCT Research Center, Tehran, Iran. In Iran, from 1991 through 2010, a total of 3170 hematopoietic stem cell transplantation have been carried out. The male/female patient ratio was 1909/1261 with a median age of 23 years (range: 4 months-71 years). The most common transplanted disorders were acute myelogenous leukemia (799 patients; 25.2%), thalassemia major (500 patients; 15.8%) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (447 patients; 14.1%). The donor types for 2147 allogeneic HSCT patients were 2007 (93.5%) human leukocyte antigen (HLA) matched-identical siblings, 66 (3.1%) HLA matched (other relatives), 52 (2.4%) HLA mismatched sibling/other relatives and 22 (1%) unrelated donors; also 16 (0.5%) of transplanted patients had syngeneic twins as donor. There were 2147 cases which had received allogeneic HSCT and 1007 cases which had received autologous HSCT. The number of allogeneic and autologous HSCT patients had increased during that time, but the allogeneic to autologous ratio remained constant. Out of 2147 allogeneic HSCT cases, there were 1730 (80.6%) cases of peripheral blood, 370 (17.2%) cases of bone marrow, and 13 (0.6%) combined peripheral blood and bone marrow cases and 34 (1.6%) cord blood cases as product types. Of the 1007 autologous patients with the first HSCT, 937 (93%) received peripheral blood, 65 (6.5%) bone marrow and 5 (0.5%) mixed bone marrow and peripheral blood as stem cell sources. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is a choice treatment for many malignant, nonmalignant and genetic diseases. In Iran, HSCT has been successfully adapted in routine clinical care. Recently, new methods have been used, for example double cord blood and haploidentical transplantation.

Aim and Background. Patients with hematological malignancies are at higher risk for mycobacterial and many other opportunistic infections due to immunosuppression that resulted from dysfunctional blood cells and chemotherapy-induced depletion in cells of immune system. This study was performed to evaluate the frequency and contributing factors for mycobacterial infections in patients with hematological malignancies according to the both culture and PCR methods on bone marrow aspiration. Materials and Methods. In this cross-sectional descriptive study, 96 patients with hematological malignancies attending to tertiary health care centers in 2009 and 2010 were enrolled. The bone marrow aspiration was cultured and also evaluated by PCR method. Results. The mean age of the patients was 39.49 years and 64.6 percent were male. Acute myeloblastic leukemia (23.3%), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (19.2%), and multiple myeloma (17.8%) were the most common malignancies. The cultures of bone marrow aspiration were negative for mycobacterium species in all patients but nucleic acid of this bacterium was detected by PCR method in three cases (3.1%) including two patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and one patient with multiple myeloma. Aspergillus, streptomyces, and brucella species.were found in culture of two, one, and two patients, respectively. The age, sex, type of malignancy, and bone marrow transplantation had no effect on PCR results (P > 0.05). Conclusions. The frequency of mycobacterial infections in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and multiple myeloma may be higher than other hematological malignancies. However for decreasing the morbidity and mortality in these patients monitoring of bone marrow aspiration for mycobacterial and other opportunistic infections is suggested.

JAK2 is a nonreceptor tyrosine kinase that plays a major role in myeloid disorders. JAK2V617F mutation is characterized by a G to T transverse at nucleotide 1849 in exon 12 of the JAK2 gene, located on the chromosome 9p, leading to a substitution of valine to phenylalanine at amino acid position 617 in the JAK2 protein. In this study we compared two molecular methods namely ARMS-PCR and AS-PCR for the evaluation of JAK2V617F mutation in patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms. In this study we evaluated JAK2 mutation in 89 patients with Myeloproliferativeneoplasm (MPNs) by simple randomized sampling. The mutation was detected by ARMS-PCR and AS-PCR in patients.Three DNA samples were sequenced for conformation of the above techniques. The JAK2 V617F mutation was detected in 86.6% (26/30) of patients with polycythemia vera and 61.5% (8/13) of patients with idiopathic myelofibrosis. None of 31 CML patients were detected by ARMS-PCR and AS-PCR. In essential thrombocythemia using ARMS-PCR and AS-PCR 46.6% (7/15) and 53% (8/15) of patients were positive, respectively. The mutation was confirmed by sequencing. The results of the study showed that similarity with other studies by two techniques and detection of the JAK2V617F mutation may depend on the molecular technique used. Also, JAK2 mutation detection is an appropriate tool for differential diagnosis of non-CML myeloproliferative neoplasms from benign condition like reactive erytrocytosis and thrombocytosis.