Breast cancer is the most common malignancy among women in Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 1,092 women attending urban primary health care centers in Abha City southwestern Saudi Arabia about breast cancer knowledge, attitudes, and related practices. Only 22.0% heard about mammography, and 41.5% heard about breast self-examination (BSE). More than half of the women in the study identified changes occurring in case of breast cancer and identified risk factors. Only 8.3% were examined by clinical breast examination (CBE), 6.2% were examined by mammography, and 29.7% performed BSE. The study points to the insufficient knowledge of women and the low practice of BSE, CBE, and mammography. Public awareness should be enhanced by all available means including mass media, schools, social gatherings, and waiting areas in primary health care centers. There is an urgent need for continuing medical education programs for health care workers in the region concerning breast cancer.

The present study targeted health care workers (HCWs) in Governmental Hospitals and Primary Health Care Centers in Abha City, southwestern Saudi Arabia. An anonymous self-report questionnaire was used to assess tobacco use and the reasons for smoking. The present study included 736 HCWs. The overall prevalence of tobacco use amounted to 26.3% (14.8% current and 11.5% former users). In a binary logistic regression analysis, males were found significantly more prone to smoke compared to females (aOR = 3.081, 95% CI: 2.004–4.739). Similarly, parental history of tobacco use was found to be a significant risk factor (aOR = 1.540, 95% CI: 1.040–2.278). Among current users, 89.9% were interested in quitting and 66.1% tried before to quit. The prevalence of smoking among HCWs in the present study, besides being a public health problem, represents a potential barrier in involving this group as a first line for tobacco control. There is a need for a national intervention programme in the country in a tailored manner for HCWs to control tobacco use parallel to the running national program for public. These interventions should begin early in basic medical education and to be applied continually during one's medical career.

Presence of cardiovascular risk factors among adolescents is a public health problem in the region. There is a need for a national program in the country to prevent and control cardiovascular risk factors among adolescents.

No abstract

Purpose:The study was designed to assess the effect of Ki-67 on oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) with the correlation of biomarker level and grades of OSCC. Material and methods: 26 samples (life biopsies) were inspected in this study, 20 of them are OSCC and 6 are normal. The specimens were processed by the routine histological procedure to prepare them for histopathological and immuno-histochemical examinations. Antibodies expression with anti-Ki-67 antibody was evaluated using image analysis for area percentage with the Leica Q550 image analyzer computer system. Statistical analysis was performed using ANOVA test. Results: Histopathological examination of oral squamous cell carcinoma revealed variable dysplastic changes and alterations of the cells. Ki-67 staining of the poorly differentiated group showed higher immuno-expression than both moderately and well-differentiated groups. The negative expression reveled in control group. The marker positive in cells with OSCC and they were found in the periphery more than the center of the tumor nests, where frequent mitoses were observed. Significant differences were recorded between the control group and all of the experimental groups in Ki-67 expression amounts that represent the area percentage of proliferative cells. Conclusion: Ki-67 is a reliable proliferative marker which can be used for the diagnosis and grading of OSCC transformation.