Evaluation of PALB2 Gene Expression in Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is the most prevalent malignancy and the second in mortality rate cancers among all cancers in women globally. In Iran it adds up to 16 percent of all cancers and is the most prevalent cancer in Iranian women. PALB2, identified as a partner and localizer of BRCA2 and proposed to have some roles in DNA damage response, has recently been identified as a breast cancer marker gene. Considering the importance of the breast cancer in Iranian women population, in the present study we aim to make clear whether the expression level of the PALB2 could be accounted as a biomarker in timely diagnosis and also a deterministic factor in prognosis of breast cancer. Accordingly, the real-time PCR has been used to evaluate PALB2 expression in blood samples acquired from 40 cancer patients and 10 normal women. Having been investigated in this Iranian women population with breast cancer, the PALB2 gene expression has shown a borderline significant increase, as compared to normal cases (P value = 0.0499). Furthermore, in this study, the correlation between PALB2 gene expression and several risk factors in breast cancer including age, menstrual state, family history of breast cancer as well as family history of other cancers has also been studied.