The development of Zemun Hospital in the 19th century was followed by better work conditions and an increasing number of patients. The arrival of doctor Vojislav Subotić to the hospital and his work were key moments in the general improvement of the hospital. Since 1887, the hospital was administered by a society known as „Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent De Paul“. By the end of 1891, they had constructed a new hospital building.

The 20th century was the most eventful period in the history of Zemun Hospital and it brought many changes. Working through out both world wars, the hospital staff aided those who were wounded or ill, both soldiers and civilians. Throughout this period, the hospital worked in three different countries, under various administrations and owners.

Aim: To determine prognosic significance of RAS oncogene mutation detection in patients with metastatic colorectal carcinoma (mCRC). Introduction: CRC is still third most common cancer of both genders and second cause of death from malignancy in Western countries. In recent years, detecting RAS mutation in mCRC tumor tissue has became an imperative in selecting patients for monoclonal antibodies targeted therapy to Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR). Nevertheless, there is no consensus regarding prognostic relevance of determining RAS status in patients with mCRC. Material and methods: Study included 116 patients with surgicaly resected CRC at Oncology Insitute of Vojvodina between January and December 2016. KRAS mutation detection was performed in formalin-fixed paraffin embeded tumor tissue samples processed by real-time chain polymerase reaction (real-time PCR) and applyng Cobas® KRAS Mutation Test and Cobas® 4800 System for detection of mutations in codons 12/13 and 61 of KRAS gene. Results: Average age in tested population was 65 years, with a male gender predominance (66.4%). Presence of KRAS mutation was found in 50.9% patients: 44.8% in codons 12/13, 4.3% in codon 61 and 1.7% in both codons 12/13 and 61. RAS mutated colorectal carcinomas (n=59) compared with RAS wildtype colorectal cancers, were significantly associated with male gender, moderately differentiated tumors, lymphovascular invasion and local nodal metastases. Conclusion: Our results show that, beside predictive, KRAS can also have prognostic significance regarding risk assesment for lymphovascular invasion and presence of local and distant metastases.

Lung carcinoma is the leading cause of increases in the morbidity and mortality rates of malignant diseases worldwide. Adenocarcinoma has been the most common histological type in the last decades due to: changes in the tobacco industry, smoking habits and the use of immunohistochemistry. Among more than half of patients, lung adenocarcinoma is diagnosed in an advanced stage of the disease. The discovery of mutations in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in lung adenocarcinoma is a major advancement in molecular pathology and a new approach to the treatment of these patients. Patients with EGFR mutated lung adenocarcinoma receive a targeted therapy (Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors-TKI) which leads to improvements in disease prognosis and quality of life. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is the most widely used and most reliable method since it requires a minimum amount of starting material and allows the amplification of the desired DNA segment up to a billion times. In this way, deletions in exon 19 are detected in approximately 90% of cases, more often in women, non-smokers and in the territory of Asia. The following may be used for EGFR testing: fresh tissue, fast-frozen tissue, tissue molded into paraffin blocks after fixation in formalin and cytological material obtained by scraping from glass tiles. Tissue processed by decalcination, acid treated or heavy metal treated tissue should be avoided. Although surgical samples represent the golden standard in determining EGFR mutations, the results obtained are compatible with the results obtained by bronchoscopic biopsy and thus eliminate the need for invasive diagnostic procedures. Bronchoscopy is an invasive diagnostic method, whose objectives are to diagnose lung tumors, determine the endoscopic spread of the disease and assess tumor operability. The presence of a tumor may be indicated by a different bronchoscopic aspect of the endobronial mucosa. The sensitivity and specificity of this method depends on: bronchologist’s skills, endoscopic findings, the number of biopsy samples, the professional competence of pathologist-cytologist and the obtained tumor amount. The tumor amount is generally small and depends on the histological type, endoscopic findings, sampling technique and the presence of other cells. It is recommended to take three to five biopsy samples, used for diagnosing but also for molecular testing. Targeted therapy is applied based on the obtained results. Given that biopsy samples molded in paraffin are cut into multiple histological sections, and that the tumor amount decreases, it is necessary to minimize the “consumption”. The concentration of isolated DNA does not differ among patients with wt EGFR and mutated EGFR adenocarcinoma. To date, there has been no consensus regarding the number of tumor cells necessary to determine EGFR mutations, and it is recommended to take samples with a minimum of 200 to 400 tumor cells. Invalid results obtained by using the PCR method are most commonly the result of a small number of preserved tumor cells in a biopsy sample. Blood and necrosis may be limiting factors for molecular testing, but not exclusion factors for the same. Bronchoscopic biopsy sample is adequate for the determination of EGFR mutations because the majority of biopsy samples have more than 100 tumor cells, the difference between the concentration of isolated DNA in EGFR mutated and wt EGFR adenocarcinomas is not statistically significant, EGFR mutations are also detected in samples with a small number of tumor cells when using highly sensitive tests.

Aim: To examine the quality of tested lung carcinoma samples, frequency and type of EGFR mutations, and their correlation with patients clinical characteristics (gender, age, smoking habits, clinical stage). Introduction: Mutations in Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) have a role in lung carcinoma development and they are more prevalent in women and non-smokers. Evaluation of EGFR mutations in lung carcinomas in mandatory for targeted therapy with tyrosine kinase inhibitors. Test performance depends on the quality of tested samples and a test type. Material and Methods: We evaluated reports of EGFR mutation real-time PCR analyses in lung carcinoma samples performed from June 2017 till February 2018. Presence of mutations was correlated with clinical characteristics of lung carcinoma patients. Results: A total of 341 samples was received for testing, among which 40 (11.7%) was unsuitable for analysis due to a low tumor cell content (<5%). Three types of mutations were detected in a total of 24 (8%) cases: L858R in 12 (50%) cases, exon 19 deletion in 10 (41.7%) cases, and G719A/C/S in two cases (8.3%). Mutations were more prevalent in women (13.7%) then in men (4.3%) (p=0.004). Patients with EGFR mutated tumors were older (67,6ą9,4 years), compared to those with non-mutated tumors (62,3ą8,8 years) (p=0,003). Smoking habits and clinical stage were not associated with mutation status in lung carcinomas. Mutations were detected only in adenocarcinomas. Conclusion: Our results suggest the low frequency of EGFR mutations in tested patients, but they are more prevalent in women and older patients.