Cancer registry in Iran: A brief overview

Cancer registry is an important tool for any successful cancer control program. The first formal cancer related data from Iran were published in 1956. In 1969, observations documenting a high incidence of esophageal cancer in the Caspian Littoral, urged researchers to set up the first population-based cancer registry in this region. This cancer registry was established jointly by University of Tehran and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). In 1976, another cancer registry started its activities in Fars Province. In 1984, the Parliament passed a bill mandating the report of all tissues "diagnosed or suspected as cancer tissue" to the Ministry of Health. While only 18% of all estimated cancer cases were reported in first reports, this rate increased to 81% in 2005 In 1998, Tehran Population-Based Cancer Registry started to collect data from cases of cancer referred to the treatment and diagnostic facilities throughout the Tehran metropolis. Digestive Disease Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, established four new population-based cancer registries in Northern Iran and another in Kerman Province in the south. These five provinces have a total population of about 9.5 million, and constitute about 16% of the total population of Iran. While the pathology-based cancer registration is in place, we hope that the addition of the population-based cancer registries, and establishment of new registries in poorly-covered areas, will improve cancer reporting in the country

Development of Production Scheduling Model With Constraint Resources and Parallel Machines

In this paper, a production scheduling model with constraint resources and parallel machines has been investigated. This problem is proposed as a multi-product production problem. Shortage is not allowed and the production horizon is indefinite. The objective is to maximize the level of resource usage and support the management’s standpoint (delays reduction). In this paper, this problem is modeled as the popular Knapsack problem in 0 and 1 programming. Then due to being NP-hard type for this kind of problems to obtain an optimal solution, A heuristic approach has been used to obtain the acceptable solution. By using the branch-and bound method, a near optimal solution is provided. Finally, resultant solutions by the proposed approach have been compared with the optimal solutions of some real-world problems and it has been observed that deviation from the optimal solution is negligible that indicates the accuracy of the proposed approach

Priority Hypertension Management Strategies for At-risk African Americans as Perceived by Medical Clinicians and Academic Scholars

African American adults, in the United States (US), bear the greatest burden of high blood pressure (HBP)--a primary risk factor for cardiovascular disease and premature death. Current research does not adequately inform the design of multi-level interventions that work to control HBP in this at-risk population. The purpose of this study was to uncover information about priority strategies recommended for HBP control in African American adults. Research questions are 1) what are factors that reduce or manage HBP in at-risk African Americans and 2) what factors are important to the design and implementation of successful HBP interventions in at-risk African Americans? A qualitative interpretive descriptive design and in-depth interview were used with a purposive sample (n=10) of doctorate-educated healthcare clinicians (i.e., physicians) and academicians (i.e., researchers) based on eligibility criteria: a) experience in treating or conducting research about HBP in African American adults, b) located within the Southern US, and c) consent to participate. Thematic analysis of audio-taped interview transcripts yielded a theoretical framework that consists of three multi-level elements believed to be critical components of interventions that can successfully manage HBP in at-risk African Americans: 1) social support, 2) lifestyle coaching, and 3) personalized medical management. Unique domains within the each element were revealed that ranged from stress management and holism to emotional resonant patient-caregiver partnership and experiential learning. Our findings were consistent with the social ecological model and have the potential to help address racial/ethnic-based health disparities through the design of patient-centered interventions. Findings will also be used to identify parameters available to simulation modelers in the design of models for optimal population level HBP control policy