Impact of COVID-19 on Management and Outcomes of Oncology Patients: Results of MENA COVID-19 and Cancer Registry (MCCR).

Introduction: Despite extensive studies of the impact of COVID-19 on patients with cancer, there is a dearth of information from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Our study aimed to report pertinent MENA COVID-19 and Cancer Registry (MCCR) findings on patient management and outcomes.

Methods: MCCR was adapted from the American Society of Clinical Oncology COVID-19 Registry to collect data specifically from patients with cancer and SARS-CoV-2 infection from 12 centers in eight countries including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Egypt, Algeria, United Arab Emirates, and Morocco.

FLT3-ITD Allele Frequency Is an Independent Prognostic Factor for Poor Outcome in FLT3-ITD-Positive AML Patients.

Background: FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 internal tandem duplication (FLT3-ITD) is a molecular genetic alteration significantly affecting the clinical outcome in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). FLT3-ITD mutations are characterized by variable mutant-to-wild allelic ratios (ARs) and sizes of the duplicated sequences. The size of the inserted sequence may vary from a few to hundreds of nucleotides.

Significance of ERCC1 and Hormonal Receptor Expression in Ovarian Cancer.

Background & Objectives : Ovarian carcinoma usually has a relatively poor prognosis. A rational approach to identify patients, who are likely to benefit from therapy, is urgently needed. Excision repair cross-complementation group 1 enzyme (ERCC1) has been proposed as a molecular predictor of clinical resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy.

Association of CXCR4 Expression and Clinical Outcome in Different Subsets of De Novo Acute Myeloid Leukemia Patients.

Background: Acute myeloid leukemia is a heterogeneous group of diseases characterized by the uncontrolled proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and progenitor cells with a reduced capacity to differentiate into mature cells. CXC chemokine receptor (CXCR4) and its ligand stromal derived factor-1 (SDF-1/CXCL12) are important players involved in cross-talk between leukemia cells and the bone marrow (BM) microenvironment. The aim to study the association between the immunohistochemical CXCR4 expression and the clinical outcome of AML in adult Egyptian patients.

Association of CYP3A5*3 and CYP1A1*2C Polymorphism with Development of Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Egyptian Patients.

Aim: Cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzyme catalyzes the phase I metabolism reaction which metabolize endogenous and exogenous DNA-reactive chemical compounds and xenobiotics which could induce genotoxicity and increase the risk for leukemia. We aimed to detect frequency of CYP3A5*3 and CYP1A1*2C polymorphisms in Egyptian acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients and to determine role of allele’s variants as a risk factor for developing leukemia. Patients and Methods: A case-control study was conducted on seventy acute myeloid leukemia patients and thirty control subjects.

Untreated hepatocellular carcinoma in Egypt: outcome and prognostic factors.

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common cancer worldwide as well as in Egypt with hepatitis C and B, alcohol and aflatoxins being the commonest risk factors.

Aim: The objective of this study was to assess the prognostic factors affecting overall survival (OS) of untreated HCC in Egypt.

Methods: This retrospective study was conducted at Tanta Cancer Center, Egypt where 288 HCC cases who received no specific therapy and were followed-up until death were identified.