**Ph.D. Candidate (Raghda Adnan Siyabakhsh) Defense**
### Objective of the Study:
The study aims to evaluate the role of proline, epiregulin, and prolidase in diagnosing patients with benign and malignant tumors compared to the cancer antigen CA 15-3 through the following objectives:
1. Determine the levels of prolidase enzyme activity, in addition to proline and epiregulin levels, in the serum of women with benign and malignant breast tumors (before and after surgery for malignant tumors).
2. Investigate the relationship between prolidase enzyme activity levels, proline, and epiregulin with cancer antigen CA 15-3 levels before and one month after breast cancer surgery.
### Results:
The current study showed:
A- Women with benign breast tumors exhibited higher levels of proline compared to women with breast cancer, and the difference was significant. Conversely, the average serum level of epiregulin in breast cancer patients was significantly higher than in women with benign breast tumors. Similarly, women with breast cancer showed higher levels of carbohydrate antigen 15-3 and prolidase activity compared to women with benign breast tumors, with a significant difference.
B- The serum level of proline increased after surgery with an average difference (before and after surgery) of 7.2 ± 2.96 pg/ml, showing a significant difference. On the contrary, the serum level of carbohydrate antigen 15-3 decreased with a notable difference of 12.97 ± 8.73 pg/ml, which was highly significant.
Despite the significant post-operative decreases in both epiregulin and prolidase activity, the differences were not substantial.
### Examination Committee:
The discussion committee consisted of:
- Prof. Dr. Ria Suleiman Baban (Chair)
- Prof. Dr. Hala Ghazi Mahmoud (Member)
- Prof. Dr. Sajid Hamid Al-Halfi (Member)
- Prof. Dr. Rafal Shakib Abdul Wahab (Member)
- Assist. Prof. Dr. Ibrahim Abdullah Mahmoud (Member)
- Prof. Dr. Raed Jassim Mohammed (Member and Supervisor)
- Assist. Prof. Dr. Qahtan Adnan Mahdi (Member and Supervisor)
The dissertation was accepted successfully with distinction.
