Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Apr 29:16:1380.
doi: 10.3332/ecancer.2022.1380. eCollection 2022.

Pancreatic cancer in the MENA region, a bibliometric review

Hasan Nassereldine  1   2   3 , Hussein Awada  1   2   4 , Adel Hajj Ali  1   2   5 , Mohammad Zeineddine  1 , Zahy Abdul Sater  6 , Yasser Shaib  7
Affiliations

Pancreatic cancer in the MENA region, a bibliometric review

Hasan Nassereldine et al. Ecancermedicalscience. .

Abstract

Background: Most Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries record pancreatic cancer incidence rates that are above the world's average. Reducing this burden requires evidence-based policies. This bibliometric review aims to examine the status of pancreatic cancer research in the MENA world, while systematically categorising publications across cancer care pathways.

Methods: We searched Scopus, Medline and PubMed for peer-reviewed publications related to both pancreatic cancer and MENA countries by using controlled vocabulary and keywords. The results were screened for duplicates and later included in the analysis based on preset eligibility criteria. A structured data extraction form was used to collect data related to each article, its methodology, its cancer care pathway, funding status and authorship.

Results: A total of 5,848 publications resulted from our search, from which 1,098 articles remained after applying the eligibility criteria. Trends show a steady increase in pancreatic cancer research by MENA. Case reports are the most common, whereas a lack in high-evidence clinical studies as well as public health and epidemiological research was evident. Most studies were not funded and had no female contributions. Funding, if present, came mostly from foreign states. There exists a much greater focus in research on diagnosis and treatment among other cancer care pathways. Most MENA-based studies did not involve collaborations with other countries. Country gross domestic product and population are both correlated to the research output.

Conclusion: This bibliometric analysis identified significant gaps and limitations in pancreatic cancer research in MENA countries. Vital domains requiring research investment have also been highlighted as a first step towards evidence-based health policies.

Keywords: MENA region; bibliometrics; oncology; pancreatic cancer; research.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Flowchart of the articles’ selection process.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Contribution of each country in the MENA region to pancreatic cancer-related research.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.. Trend of publications of each country in the MENA region across the years 2000–2020.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.. Difference in funding between each contributing MENA country.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.. Graphical demonstration of the collaboration among the MENA countries and between the MENA countries and the world.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.. Bar chart showing the country of the corresponding author and its frequency.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.. Various cancer care pathways addressed by the articles.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Sung H, Ferlay J, Siegel RL, et al. Global cancer statistics 2020: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2021. Advance online publication. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Ferlay J, Soerjomataram I, Dikshit R, et al. Cancer incidence and mortality worldwide: sources, methods and major patterns in GLOBOCAN 2012. Int J Cancer. 2015;136:E359–E386. doi: 10.1002/ijc.29210. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Howlader N, Noone AM, Krapcho M, et al. SEER Cancer Statistics Review, 1975–2013. Bethesda: National Cancer Institute; 2016. [ http://seer.cancer.gov/csr/1975_2013/]
    1. Parkin DM, Boyd L, Walker LC. The fraction of cancer attributable to lifestyle and environmental factors in the UK in 2010. Br J Cancer. 2011;105(Suppl2):S77–S81. doi: 10.1038/bjc.2011.489. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hidalgo M. Pancreatic cancer. N Engl J Med. 2010;362:1605–1617. doi: 10.1056/NEJMra0901557. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources