Iranian Journal of Blood and Cancer
Volume:13 Issue: 1, Mar 2021

DNA methylation patterns are often changed in cancer cells. Many of the tumor inhibitor genes are silenced by methylation, such as CDKN2B, p73, and the suppressor of cytokine signaling in patients with acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML). Secreted frizzled-related protein -4 and -5 (SFRP4, 5) are negative regulators of the Wnt signaling pathway. We aimed to evaluate the methylation status of SFRP4 and SFRP5 genes in patients with AML.

Blood samples were isolated from 60 patients with AML and 30 healthy controls. DNA was exploited, treated with sodium bisulfite, and tested utilizing methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction with specific primers for methylated and unmethylated sequences of the SFRP4 and SFRP5 genes.

The frequency of unfit hypermethylation of SFRP4 and SFRP5 genes in patients with AML was characterized to be 50% (30/60) and 40% (24/60), respectively. Moreover, for all the subjects in the control group, methylation of SFRP4 and SFRP5 genes was negative. The spread of SFRP4 and SFRP5 promoter methylation in patients with AML was higher than the control population.

Hypermethylation was seen in SFRP4 and SFRP5 genes in patients with AML.

Red blood cell (RBC) alloimmunization is an important complication following repeated packed RBC transfusions in patients with anemia. We aimed to determine the prevalence of RBC alloimmunization and the characteristics of the RBC antibodies among patients with solid tumors in Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (Hospital USM). 

A cross-sectional study was performed from May 2018 to May 2019 in the Transfusion Medicine Unit of Hospital USM, on 322 adult patients with solid tumors. The blood samples were screened for the presence of RBC alloantibodies. Samples with positive antibody screening were subjected for antibody identification. 

 The mean age of the patients was 52 years old. Most were Malays (91%) and female (61.2%). The three most common cancers were breast (32.3%), gastrointestinal (16.8%) and head and neck (14.0%). The overall prevalence of RBC alloimmunization was 5.3%. Most alloimmunized patients had a single alloantibody (88.2%). The anti-Mia comprised the most common alloantibody (26.3%) followed by anti-E (10.5%) and anti-Lea (10.5%). 

This study showed low prevalence of RBC alloimmunization among patients with cancers. The alloantibodies were clinically non-significant. Thus, routine antibody screening and extensive RBC phenotyping in cancer patients who need multiple transfusions is not warranted.

Several markers are investigated for prognostic purpose in CLL patients among which interleukin-10 (IL-10) is under more investigation. We aimed to study IL-10 level in a group of newly diagnosed patients with CLL in a single center in Alexandria, Egypt.

In this study, 80 newly diagnosed patients with CLL referring to Hematology Department of the Medical Research Institute of Alexandria University, Egypt, and a control group including 40 healthy volunteers were included. ZAP-70 was determined by flowcytometry and serum IL-10 concentration was measured using IL-10 sandwich ELISA method.

Mean serum IL-10 levels were significantly higher among patients with CLL. IL-10 level was higher in those who were positive for ZAP-70, Binet stage C, Rai stage III-IV and patients with high scores for CLL prognostic index (≥8). It showed significant positive correlation with the percentage of ZAP-70 expression and significant negative correlation to hemoglobin and platelets count.

Serum IL-10 in patients with CLL at presentation could be used as a prognostic marker for disease progression. Measurement of IL-10 in low resources areas where flowcytometry is not available could be recommended as a substitute investigation.

Blood and its products are the most precious resource to any healthcare institution, and the management of these limited resources is necessary to avoid wasting this precious gift. This study, therefore, aimed to assess the efficiency of blood ordering and transfusion practices in healthcare institutions of southern Kerman province, Iran. 

This retrospective survey was conducted between March and September 2019. The information of admitted patients in seven healthcare institutions in southern Kerman province, for whom one or more units of blood were requested, were collected. Cross-match to transfusion (CT) Ratio, Transfusion Index (TI), and Transfusion Probability (T%) were calculated. Values of <2.5, >0.5 and >30% were taken as standards, for CT, TI, and T%, respectively.

On average, 1.35±1.00 blood units are requested for each patient. For 4777 patients, 5647 units cross-matched, and only 4789 units were transfused. The overall CT ratio, TI, and T% were calculated as 1.17, 1.00, and 90.24%, respectively. The highest CT ratio was calculated for ICU and emergency departments, while the thalassemia center had the most desirable ratio.

A desirable blood ordering and utilization pattern was observed in the healthcare institutions of southern Kerman province.

Although acute leukemia commonly relapses in adults, the conversion of leukemic cell lineage (lymphoid or myeloid) upon relapse has rarely taken place. “Lineage switch” is a term widely used to define the leukemic lineage transformation as assessed by morphology, cytochemistry, and immunophenotyping from diagnosis to relapse. In most lineage switch cases, B-cell lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma relapses as acute myeloid leukemia or vice versa. Here, we report an exceedingly rare case of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia relapsing as mixed-phenotype acute leukemia.

Mesenchymal hamartoma of the chest wall is a rare benign tumor found in infants and young children. We present a male neonate with bilateral multifocal mesenchymal hamartoma of the chest wall since birth causing deformity of the chest wall and respiratory symptoms. Mesenchymal hamartoma is often unilateral and solitary, but multifocality could be expected in the absence of the malignancy. Mesenchymal hamartoma of the chest wall in infants should always be considered as the differential diagnosis of the chest wall masses in young children.