Abstract

Background/Aims: Gastric cancer (GC) is the second:leading cause of cancer related deaths worldwide and is the most frequent cancer in Iran. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) has been shown to be associated with gastric cancer. The present study was carried out to investigate the prevalence of Epstein-Barr virus,(EBV) associated gastric cancer among Iranian patients. Methods: Ninety formalin fixed paraffin-embedded cases of gastric cancer were studied. The specimens were investigated for the presence of the EBV genome-by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results: Of ninety specimens, EBV was detected in six cases (6.66). The mean age for patients EBV-positive gastric carcinomas was 72.1 years, whereas the mean age for the entire group was 65.7 years. Four out of 64(6.25) male patients and 2 out of 26 (7.69) female cases were positive for EBV. According to anatomic location, EBV was detected in 4 out of 39 (10.25) gastric cancer were located in cardia and 2 out of 26(7.69) gastric cancer were located in middle/corpus. Conclusions: The present study shows that the frequency of EBV-associated gastric carcinoma in Iran is low. Differences of EBV-assodated gastric carcinoma incidence in different countries may reflect the epidemiologic factors and dietary habits. Further analysis of clinical pathology features of EBV-associated gastric carcinoma using a larger number of cases would give invaluable insights into its etiology.