HLA Class I Allele Frequencies in Southern Iranian Women with Breast Cancer

Objective(s): Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in women worldwide. It has been revealed that elevated risk for malignancy may be associated with certain HLA alleles. This study was performed to assess the association of HLA class I alleles with breast cancer in women in Southern Iran. Materials and Method: Eighty nine patients included for analyzing the HLA class I alleles frequency using complement dependent cytotoxicity microassay and results were compared to 86 gender-matched healthy volunteers. Results: There were significantly more patients with A24(9) allele than those of healthy individuals (38.2% versus 16.3%) (P-value=0.002). In contrast, HLA-A1 had significantly much less expression in the patient group compared to the controls (P- value=0.04). Conclusion: A24(9) allele appears to be one of the factors increasing an individual’s the susceptibility to breast cancer in our population but further investigation might be required.