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Background/aim: Low levels of vitamin D are a widespread global issue. This study aimed to determine the optimal vitamin D3 supplementation dose for healthy young adults by comparing the effectiveness of gradually increasing cholecalciferol doses over two years., Patients and Methods: Thirty-five volunteers participated in a two-season pilot study conducted from October to April to avoid sunlight-induced vitamin D3 synthesis. The participants used oil-based drops of cholecalciferol, increasing their dose from 1,000 to 2,000, 4,000, and then 8,000 IU daily for 60 days with a 30-day break., Results: Supplementing with 1,000 IU/day raised vitamin D levels to the recommended range (above 75 nmol/l), but levels dropped below this range after a 30-day break. A dose of 2,000 IU/day maintained vitamin D levels within the recommended range, even after the break. Increasing the dose to 4,000 IU/day produced a rapid rise, though levels dropped more significantly after stopping supplementation. With 8,000 IU/day, both the rise and subsequent decline in vitamin D levels were more pronounced., Conclusion: Effective vitamin D supplementation in healthy young adults can be achieved with a daily dose of 2,000 IU during winter. However, 4,000 IU/day was more effective for maintaining levels above 100 nmol/l, supporting broader health benefits. Regular monitoring of [25(OH)D], calcium, and phosphorus levels is essential., (Copyright © 2025, International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.)

Background/aim: Hearing impairment affects a small but significant percentage of newborns (0.1-0.4%). Newborn hearing screening (NHS) is recommended for early detection and treatment. The implementation of NHS can vary among countries. In this study, we present the methodology, organization, and technical requirements of NHS. This study analyzed results from a tertiary hospital, identified issues, and proposed solutions., Patients and Methods: In the studied region, there are five maternity hospitals and a perinatal intensive care center and in 2020, there were 5,864 live births. Screening is performed at three levels. The first screening is conducted on the 2 nd -3 rd day of a newborn's life in a maternity hospital, the first rescreening on the 3 rd -6 th week at a relevant ENT department, and the second rescreening on the 3 rd -6 th month of life at the regional screening center where the central database is also held., Results: In the studied region, 5,793 out of 5,864 (98.79%) newborns received NHS in 2020. Of these, 120 (2.07%) were tested positive on their first screening. Ninety-four patients (78.3%) of those attended the ENT department for a first rescreening. Thirty-four patients (0.59% of total) were tested positive again and referred to the regional screening center. Out of the 27 patients who attended the second rescreening, four (0.07% of the total) were ultimately diagnosed with hearing impairment., Conclusion: Our study found that newborn hearing screening (NHS) in our region achieved a high compliance rate of 98.8% for initial screenings in 2020. However, challenges remain in the rescreening process due to data management issues, inter-regional cooperation, and public awareness. The recent implementation of mandatory screenings, updated guidelines, and a centralized database is expected to enhance the effectiveness of NHS. Further research is needed to evaluate these improvements., (Copyright © 2024, International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.)

Aim: The aim of the study was to evaluate the yields of 2-deoxy-2-[ 18 F]-fluoro-D-glucose positron-emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging ( 18 F-FDG-PET/MRI) and 18 F-FDG-PET/computed tomography (CT) for the detection of metastatic involvement of locoregional neck nodes in patients with head and neck malignancy., Patients and Methods: A total of 90 patients (66 men and 24 women) met the inclusion criteria. Preoperative staging was performed: 53 examinations using PET/CT and 37 using PET/MRI., Results: For PET/MRI, the study demonstrated a sensitivity of 89%, specificity of 64%, positive predictive value of 85%, and negative predictive value of 70%; PET/CT had a sensitivity of 95%, specificity 47%, positive predictive value of 82%, and negative predictive value of 78%., Conclusion: Both methods have a high yield in N-clinical staging with statistically insignificant differences. We assume PET/MRI to be the first-choice method in organ-targeted examinations, for pediatric patients and repeat examinations. In cases of MRI contraindication, PET/CT can be used with no impact on the quality of care., (Copyright© 2020, International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.)

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical contribution of protein induced by vitamin K absence (PIVKA-II) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) diagnostics and compare it with alpha-foetoprotein (AFP), a routinely used tumour marker., Materials and Methods: A total of 332 participants were enrolled in this study: 64 with HCC, 48 with liver metastases of colorectal cancer origin, 42 with liver cirrhosis and 178 healthy individuals. Serum levels of PIVKA-II were measured using the chemiluminescent assay of the Architect 1000i System (Abbott, USA) and AFP levels using the chemiluminescent assay by DxI 800 (Beckman Coulter, USA)., Results: PIVKA-II achieved better clinical sensitivity than AFP and the difference in this sensitivity was statistically significant. PIVKA-II achieved the best sensitivity (96.9%) in distinguishing between the HCC and control groups with the proposed cut-off value of 60 mAU/ml., Conclusion: Our recommendation is for addition of PIVKA-II to the routine panel of HCC tumour markers., (Copyright© 2018, International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.)

Background/aim: Melanoma represents one of the most aggressive forms of cancer. With the rapid increases in the incidence of melanoma in the United States, Australia and Europe over the last decades, melanoma has been considered an epidemic cancer in these areas. The aim of our study was to evaluate the utility of osteoprotegerin (OPG), osteopontin (OPN), epidermal growth factor (EGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor VEGF for the diagnosis and prognosis of melanoma., Patients and Methods: Overall, 322 individuals were assessed: 183 melanoma patients and 139 healthy individuals. Melanoma patients were divided into four subgroups according to the Breslow score. OPN, OPG, EGF, and VEGF were determined in each plasma sample., Results: The serum levels of the following biomarkers were statistically significantly higher in the melanoma group compared to the control group: OPG and, OPN (p<0.0001), EGF (p=0.0379). In the first stage, OPG (p=0.0236) and OPN (p=0.0327) showed a statistically significant increase. Concerning positive and negative sentinel node metastases a statistically significant change was observed in: OPN (p<0.0001), EGF (p=0.0114), VEGF (p=0.0114)., Conclusion: OPG and OPN are promising biomarkers of early-stage melanoma. EGF and VEGF appear to be prognostic biomarkers., (Copyright© 2018, International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.)

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the ability of tissue polypeptide-specific antigen (TPS), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), and cancer antigen 15-3 (CA 15-3) to predict relapse in breast cancer patients, when the measurement of biomarkers is performed within 6 months after surgery., Patients and Methods: Four hundred and seventy-two patients with breast cancer were evaluated. TPS, CEA, and CA 15-3 were measured in months 1, 3, and 6, after surgery. Disease recurrence was recorded between 7-12 months after surgery. Disease recurrence occurred in 60 patients, while 412 patients remained in recurrence-free status., Results: TPS levels of the recurrence group differed statistically significantly in the first and sixth month after surgery compared to recurrence-free group (p=0.0339, AUC=0.6056; p<0.0001, AUC=0.7196). CEA and CA 15-3 measurements did not achieve a statistically significant difference for any month examined., Conclusion: TPS level in the sixth month after surgery is the best candidate biomarker to predict disease recurrence., (Copyright© 2018, International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. George J. Delinasios), All rights reserved.)

Aim: The first aim of this study was to search for new biomarkers to be used in gastric cancer diagnostics. The second aim was to verify the findings presented in literature on a sample of the local population and investigate the risk of gastric cancer in that population using a multivariant statistical analysis., Patients and Methods: We assessed a group of 36 patients with gastric cancer and 69 healthy individuals. We determined carcinoembryonic antigen, cancer antigen 19-9, cancer antigen 72-4, matrix metalloproteinases (-1, -2, -7, -8 and -9), osteoprotegerin, osteopontin, prothrombin induced by vitamin K absence-II, pepsinogen I, pepsinogen II, gastrin and Helicobacter pylori for each sample., Results: The multivariate stepwise logistic regression identified the following biomarkers as the best gastric cancer predictors: CEA, CA72-4, pepsinogen I, Helicobacter pylori presence and MMP7., Conclusion: CEA and CA72-4 remain the best markers for gastric cancer diagnostics. We suggest a mathematical model for the assessment of risk of gastric cancer., (Copyright© 2016 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. John G. Delinassios), All rights reserved.)

Aim: The aim of the study was to assess the degree to which tissue polypeptide antigen (TPA) and tissue polypeptide-specific antigen (TPS), as well as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), can assist in the detection of distant metastases., Patients and Methods: We assessed 157 patients with colorectal and breast cancer divided into two groups. The first was a group of patients with cancer at stages 1, 2 and 3; the second was a group of patients with cancer at stage 4 with metastasis., Results: We found significantly higher levels of all biomarkers in the metastatic group compared to the group with cancer at stages 1-3 (p<0.0001). The calculated area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.9929 for TPS, 0.9337 for TPA and 0.7234 for CEA. The cut-off was calculated for each biomarker at 95% specificity, TPS cut-off=255 IU/l (sensitivity 95%), TPA cut-off=200 IU/l (sensitivity 70%) and CEA cut-off=18 μg/l (sensitivity 37%)., Conclusion: We suggest combining CEA with TPS or TPA in the detection of distant metastases or using only cytokeratins. This approach can significantly increase the quality of detection of the metastatic process., (Copyright© 2016 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. John G. Delinassios), All rights reserved.)