Original Articles
Noura Barhoum and Jumana Saleh
Abstract
This study was conducted to investigate the serum l evels of survivin and the relationship with known h istological parameters in breast cancer patients. Fifty-four pa tients with newly diagnosed breast cancer and 25 h ealthy volunteers were enrolled. Serum samples were collec ted from the patients before Chemotherapy. Serum su rvivin concentrations were measured using enzyme-linked im munosorbent assay (ELISA). Serum survivin levels in patients were not significantly different from controls (p=0 .204). Also, survivin concentrations were not signi ficantly related to age and histological parameters in patients with breast cancer except for nodal involvement. Serum survivin levels were significantly higher in patients with n odal involvement compared with node negatives (p=0. 03). However, serum survivin levels were not influenced by the number of involved nodes (p=0.78). In conclu sion, our study suggests that serum survivin levels could be a sensitive marker for detecting metastases in lymp h nodes in breast cancer patients by ELIZA technique.