• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.11
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• pp.6643-6647
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• 2013

Background: Despite the fact that breast cancer is the most common female cancer worldwide, more than half of the breast cancer risk factors remained unexplained. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of cigarette smoking with risk of breast cancer. Materials and Methods: A case-control study was conducted in the Clinical Centre of Kragujevac, Serbia, covering 382 participants (191 cases and 191 controls). In the analysis of data logistic regression was used. Results: Breast cancer risk was significantly increased in those who quit smoking at ${\leq}50$ years of age (OR=2.72; 95% confidence interval - 95%CI=1.02-7.27) and in those who quit smoking less than 5 years before diagnosis of the disease (OR=4.36; 95%CI=1.12-16.88). When smokers were compared with nonsmokers without passive exposure to smoking, former smoking significantly increased breast cancer risk (OR=2.37; 95%CI=1.07-5.24). Risk for breast cancer was significantly increased in those who quit smoking at ${\leq}50$ years of age (OR=3.29; 95%CI=1.17-9.27) and in those who quit smoking less than 5 years before diagnosis of the disease (OR=5.46; 95%CI=1.34-22.28). Conclusions: These data suggest that cigarette smoking is associated with an elevated risk of breast cancer among former smokers in Serbia.

• International Journal of Concrete Structures and Materials
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.89-118
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• 2015

The geometric nonlinearity of off-diagonal bracing system (ODBS) could be a complementary system to covering and extending the nonlinearity of reinforced concrete material. Finite element modeling is performed for flexural frame, x-braced frame and the ODBS braced frame system at the initial phase. Then the different models are investigated along various analyses. According to the experimental results of flexural and x-braced frame, the verification is done. Analytical assessments are performed in according to three dimensional finite element modeling. Nonlinear static analysis is considered to obtain performance level and seismic behaviour, and then the response modification factors calculated from each model's pushover curve. In the next phase, the evaluation of cracks observed in the finite element models, especially for RC members of all three systems is performed. The finite element assessment is performed on engendered cracks in ODBS braced frame for various time steps. The nonlinear dynamic time history analysis accomplished in different stories models for three records of Elcentro, Naghan and Tabas earthquake accelerograms. Dynamic analysis is performed after scaling accelerogram on each type of flexural frame, x-braced frame and ODBS braced frame one by one. The base-point on RC frame is considered to investigate proportional displacement under each record. Hysteresis curves are assessed along continuing this study. The equivalent viscous damping for ODBS system is estimated in according to references. Results in each section show the ODBS system has an acceptable seismic behaviour and their conclusions have been converged when the ODBS system is utilized in reinforced concrete frame.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.12
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• pp.5053-5058
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• 2015

Background: Cervical cancer is one of the commonest cancers among women all over the world. The association of cervical cancer with human papilloma virus (HPV) is well established. Knowledge about the causal relationship between HPV and cervical cancer is important to make appropriate, evidence-based health care choices. In this context we conducted a community based study among women about the knowledge, attitude and practice about HPV infections and their health effects. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional interview based house to house survey was conducted with a validated data collection tool covering sociodemographic factors, knowledge, attitude and practice about HPV and its health effects, among 1020 women from a rural village, Perdoor, in Udupi district, Karnataka, India in 2013-14. Results: The mean age of participants was 38.9 years (SD=12.6). Study participants showed a high literacy rate (85.7%). Only 2.4% of sexually exposed women had undergone Pap smear testing. Partners of 4.4%women had undergone circumcision and they belonged to the Muslim community. Male condom usage was reported by 26 women (2.6%). However, none of the participants had heard of HPV and its health effects. Conclusions: This community based study found complete ignorance about HPV among rural South Indian women in spite of a high literacy level.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.14
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• pp.5663-5667
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• 2015

Background: Earlier studies on the association between p53 codon 72 Arg>Pro polymorphism and cancer risk were inconclusive and conflicting for the Saudi population. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to investigate the relationship between the codon 72 Arg>Pro polymorphism and overall cancer risk in Saudi Arabia. Materials and Methods: We searched all eligible published studies and data were pooled together to perform the meta-analysis. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated for homozygous, heterozygous, dominant and recessive genetic models. Results: A total of five eligible published studies covering 502 cancer cases and 784 healthy controls were included in the meta-analysis. No publication bias was detected in this study. The results suggested that the variant (Pro vs Arg: p=0.960; OR=1.004, 95% CI=0.852-1.183), homozygous (Pro.Pro vs Arg.Arg: p=0.970; OR=1.006, 95% CI=0.729-1.390), heterozygous (Arg.Pro vs Arg.Arg: p=0.473; OR=0.783, 95% CI=0.402-1.527) carriers were not associated with overall cancer risk. Similarly, dominant (Pro.Pro+Pro.Arg vs Arg.Arg: p=0.632; OR=0.886, 95% CI=0.540-1.454) and recessive (Pro.Pro vs Pro.Arg+Arg.Arg: p=0.269; OR=1.163, 95%CI=0.890-1.521) models also did not indicate increased risk of cancer. Conclusions: The current meta-analysis suggests that the codon 72 Arg>Pro polymorphism of the p53 gene might not contribute to cancer susceptibility in Saudi population. Future well designed large case control studies are needed to validate our findings.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.14
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• pp.5655-5661
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• 2015

Purpose: To assess the role of two adjuvant chemotherapy regimens, anthracycline-based and CMF on disease free survival and overall survival breast cancer patients by meta-analysis approach in Eastern Mediterranean and Asian countries to determine which is more effective and evaluate the appropriateness and efficiency of two different proposed statistical models. Materials and Methods: Survival curves were digitized and the survival proportions and times were extracted and modeled to appropriate covariates by two multivariate mixed effects models. Studies which reported disease free survival and overall survival curves for anthracycline-based or CMF as adjuvant chemotherapy that were published in English in the Eastern Mediterranean region and Asia were included in this systematic review. The two transformations of survival probabilities (Ln (-Ln(S)) and Ln(S/ (1-S))) as dependent variables were modeled by a multivariate mixed model to same covariates in order to have precise estimations with high power and appropriate interpretation of covariate effects. The analysis was carried out with SAS Proc MIXED and STATA software. Results: A total of 32 studies from the published literature were analysed, covering 4,092 patients who received anthracycline-based and 2,501 treated with CMF for the disease free survival and in order to analyze the overall survival, 13 studies reported the overall survival curves in which 2,050 cases were treated with anthracycline-based and 1,282 with CMF regimens. Conclusions: The findings illustrated that the model with dependent variable Ln (-Ln(S)) had more precise estimations of the covariate effects and showed significant difference between the effects of two adjuvant chemotherapy regimens. Anthracycline-based treatment gave better disease free survival and overall survival. As an IPD meta-analysis in the Italy the results of Angelo et al in 2011 also confirmed that anthracycline-based regimens were more effective for survival of breast cancer patients. The findings of Zare et al 2012 on disease free survival curves in Asia also provided similar evidence.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.13
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• pp.5415-5420
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• 2015

Background: The present study was designed to ascertain knowledge about HPV, cervical cancer (CC) and the Pap test among female dental students of Panineeya Institute of Dental Sciences and Hospital, Hyderabad, India. Materials and Methods: A self-administered questionnaire covering demographic details, knowledge relating to human papilloma virus (HPV) (8 items), cervical cancer (4 items) and the Pap smear (6 items) was employed. Responses were coded as "True, False and Don't Know". Mean and standard deviation (SD) for correct answers and levels of knowledge were determined. Results: Based on the year of study, significant differences in knowledge of HPV werenoted for questions on symptoms (p=0.01); transmission from asymptomatic partners (p=0.002); treatment with antibiotics (p=0.002); start of sexual activity (p=0.004); and recommended age for HPV vaccination (p=0.01). For knowledge regarding CC, significance was observed for the age group being affected (p=0.008) and symptoms of the disease in early stages (p=0.001). Indications for Pap smear tests like symptoms' of vaginal discharge (p=0.002), marital status (p=0.01) and women with children (p=0.02) had significant difference based on the year of study. Based on religion, transmission of HPV via pregnancy, HPV related diseases except CC and preventive measures except condom use and oral contraceptives showed significant differences. However, significant variation with religion was observed only for two preventive measures of CC (Pap test; p=0.004) and HPV vaccination (p=0.003). Likewise, only the frequency of Pap test showed a significant difference for religion (p=0.001). Conclusions: This study emphasizes the lack of awareness with regard to HPV, CC and screening with pap smear even among health professionals. Hence, regular health campaigns are essential to reduce the disease burden.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.13
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• pp.5407-5413
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• 2015

Background: Published data regarding associations between the P275A polymorphism in the macrophage scavenger receptor 1 (MSR1) gene and prostate cancer (PCa) risk are inconclusive. The aim of this study was to comprehensively evaluate the genetic risk of P275A polymorphism in MSR1 gene for PCa. Materials and Methods: A systematic literature search was carried out in Pubmed, Medline (Ovid), Embase, CBM, CNKI, Weipu, and Wanfang databases, covering all available publications (last search was performed on Apr 27, 2015). Statistical analysis was performed using Revman 5.2 and STATA 10.1 software. Results: A total of 5,017 cases and 4,869 controls in 12 case-control studies were included in this meta-analysis. When all groups were pooled, there was no evidence that the P275A polymorphism had a significant association with PCa under dominant (OR=0.93, 95%CI=0.81-1.06, and p=0.28), co-dominant (homogeneous OR=0.97, 95%CI=0.56-1.68, and p=0.92; heterogeneous OR=0.93, 95%CI=0.74-1.15, and p=0.49), recessive (OR=1.10, 95%CI=0.65-1.87, and p=0.73), over-dominant (OR=0.93, 95%CI=0.75-1.15, and p=0.50), and allelic (OR=0.95, 95%CI=0.77-1.16, and p=0.61) genetic models. For stratified analyses by ethnicity and study design, no significant associations were found in the white race, the yellow race, the black race and mixed ethnicity, and the population-based case-control (PCC) and hospital-based case-control (HCC) studies under all genetic models. Conclusions: Based on our meta-analysis, the P275A polymorphism in the MSR1 gene is unlikely to be a risk factor for PCa.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.20
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• pp.9021-9025
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• 2014

Background: Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer among females in Turkey. Predictors affecting the breast self-examination (BSE) performance vary in developing countries. Objective: To determine the frequency of BSE performance and predictors of self-reported BSEs among women in the capital city of Turkey. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 376 Turkish women using a self-administered questionnaire covering socio-demographic variables and BSE-related features. Results: Of the participants, 78.7% (N=296) reported practicing BSE, whereas 9.5% (N=28) were implementing BSE regularly on a monthly basis, and only 5.7% (N=17) were performing BSE regularly within a week after each menstrual cycle. Multivariate logistic regression modeling revealed that BSE performance was more likely in younger age groups [20-39 years] (p=0.018, OR=3.215) and [40-49 years] (p=0.009, OR=3.162), women having a family history of breast disease (p=0.038, OR=2.028), and housewives (p=0.013, OR=0.353). Conclusions: Although it appears that the rates of BSE performers are high, the number of women conducting appropriate BSE on a regular time interval basis is lower than expected. Younger age groups, family history of breast diseases and not being employed were identified as significant predictors of practicing BSE appropriately. Older age and employment were risk factors for not performing BSE in this sample.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.20
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• pp.8709-8713
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• 2014

Background: Previous studies have indicated that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the interleukin-17 (IL-17) gene are associated with an increased risk of gastric cancer. However, the findings were inconsistent. Materials and Methods: To provide a more reliable estimation of the association between SNPs in the IL-17 gene and the susceptibility to gastric cancer, we searched PubMed, CNKI, and Wan Fang databases and selected finally six studies covering 2,366 cases and 3,205 controls to perform a meta-analysis. Results: Statistical analyses showed that an rs2275913 polymorphism within the IL-17A gene was significantly associated with an increased risk of gastric cancer using a generalized odds ratio (ORG, a model-free approach). Moreover, we also found that the 'A' allele carriers of IL-17A rs2275913 had a significant link with clinicopathological features. However, no significant positive signals were observed in the association analysis of the rs3748067 and rs763780 polymorphisms with the risk of gastric cancer in IL-17A and IL-17F, respectively. Conclusions: Despite some limitations, the present meta-analysis provided a more precise estimation of the relationship between the IL-17 gene SNPs and gastric cancer risk compared with individual studies.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.8
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• pp.3607-3612
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• 2014

Background: In recent years, numerous studies have been performed to investigate the CCND1 G870A gene polymorphism impact on brain tumors susceptibility. Unfortunately, the results of previous studies were inconsistent. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to derive a more precise estimation of any association. Materials and Methods: We conducted a search in PubMed, Embase and CNKI covering all published papers up to November, 2013. Odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) were applied to assess associations. Results: A total of 6 publications including 9 case-control studies met the inclusion criteria. The pooled ORs for the total included studies showed significant association among comparison A vs G (OR= 1.246, 95%CI= 1.092-1.423, p= 0.001), homozygote comparison AA vs GG (OR= 1.566, 95%CI= 1.194-2.054, p= 0.001), heterozygote comparison AG vs GG (OR= 1.290, 95%CI= 0.934-1.782, p= 0.122), dominant model AA/GA vs GG (OR= 1.381, 95%CI= 1.048-1.821, p= 0.022) and recessive model AA vs GA/GG (OR= 1.323, 95%CI= 1.057-1.657, p= 0.015) especially in glioma. Conclusions: CCND1 G870A polymorphism may increase brain tumor risk, especially for gliomas. However, more primary large scale and well-designed studies are still required to evaluate the interaction of CCND1 G870A polymorphism with brain tumor risk.