Cancer research priorities and gaps in Iran: the influence of cancer burden on cancer research outputs between 1997 and 2014

ObjectivesAs a developing country, Iran is experiencing the increasing burden of cancers, which are currently the third leading cause of mortality in Iran. This study aims to demonstrate that cancer research in Iran concentrates on the cancer research priorities based on the global burden of disease (GBD) reports.Study designDescriptive evaluation of all cancers disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) was performed using GBD data. Also a comprehensive search was conducted using cancer-associated keywords to obtain all cancer-related publications from Iran, indexed in Web of Science.MethodMultiple regression analysis and correlation coefficients (R2) were used to evaluate the possible associations between cancer research publications and GBD.ResultsDuring 1996-2014, the majority of cancer-related publications in Iran focused on breast cancer, leukaemia and stomach cancer, respectively. This study found hypothetical correlations between cancer publications in Iran in line with the burden of cancer as reported by GBD. Particularly, correlations between years lived with disability (YLD) and cancer-related publications were more obvious.ConclusionThis study introduces a new outline in setting cancer research priorities in the region.