Cancer Institute

The Cancer Institute

The history of the Cancer Institute of the Islamic Republic of Iran dates back to 1949, when a cancer hospital was established as a result of a collaborative agreement between Tehran University Medical School and the Red Crescent Organization of the country. The hospital provided surgical, pathological, and outpatient services to referred cancer patients nationwide. In 1950, the radiotherapy unit was established and one year later, under an agreement with the World Health Organization, the first cobalt unit in the Institute was established and radiotherapeutic services were provided to patients. In 1960, cytotechnology and in 1962 experimental units were added. By 1970, the Cancer Institute was fully equipped and included pathology, surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, medical genetics, and experimental research laboratory. Now the Cancer Institute consists of 14 departments and acts as a leading center in campaigns involving all aspects of cancer control, from generating population data (population-based cancer registry) to state of the art patient care at a national level.

Annually about 10,000 cancer patients receive inpatient and outpatient care in different departments of the cancer institute of Iran. Several multidisciplinary tumor boards, including general, head and neck, gastroenterology, breast and sarcoma tumor boards discuss the complicated patients and make decision about the best treatment options for the presented patients. In terms of education, cancer institute of Iran provides residency and fellowship programs, including pathology, radiation oncology, medical oncology, cancer surgery and palliative care. In addition, nurses, radiotherapy technicians and biophysicists spend some of their training periods in the cancer institute of Iran. Three research centers including Cancer Research Center (2003), Cancer Model (Biology) Research Center (2014), and Radiation Oncology Research Center (2015) have been established in the cancer institute of Iran and coordinate cancer research in different fields including basic, epidemiology, and clinical research.

The Mission of the Cancer Institute

• To provide multidisciplinary care for cancer patients
• To advance scientific and medical knowledge in research, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment nationwide. 
• To promote basic and clinical research activities in all fields of oncology 
• To strengthen the National Cancer Registry data system 

Cancer Research Center

Cancer Research Center was established in 2002 at Iran Cancer Institute, which is the oldest and the most comprehensive cancer center in Iran. CRC is one of the many research centers affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS) and the Cancer Institute of Iran. CRC is Secretariat for the National Cancer Research Network. We fight against cancer through development of evidence on cancer prevention, early diagnosis, treatment and palliative care, thought multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary basic and clinical cancer research and collaboration with all the national and international peers.

Vision statement

The Cancer Research Center (CRC) will be the leading research institute for creating high quality evidences in the different aspects of cancer control, including cancer registration, prevention, early detection, treatment and palliative care in I.R. of Iran.  We will be a well-known institute for our research in the international level and collaborating center for the world health organization (WHO) to promote cancer registry and surveillance in the Middle East region.

Mission statement

• We conduct high quality research to enhance cancer control status (i.e. prevention, early detection, treatment, palliative care) in Iran.
• We are working to enhance research capacities and infrastructure in the cancer institute of Iran and respond national need for research evidence and priorities.
• We provide high quality training program for research methodology in different disciplines, including cancer epidemiology, basic and genetics and molecular biology of cancer, and clinical cancer research.
• Collaboration with local and international research groups and organizations is the most important methods for development and quality improvement in CRC.  

International Collaborators:

• International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)
• International Union for Cancer Control (UICC)
• National Cancer Institute (NCI), USA
• Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
• University of Toronto, Canada
• Maastricht University, The Netherlands
• Cancer Registration Norway, Norway
• University of Greifswald, Germany
• Morgan State University, USA
• University of Pavia, Italy

Research Interests:

• Cancer Epidemiology
• Cancer Nutrition
• Cancer Biology
• Cancer Genetics
• Cancer Registry
• Clinical Research
• Health Policy in Cancer
• Cancer Specific Priorities: Breast Cancer, Head and Neck Cancer, Stomach Cancer, Esophageal Cancer, Colorectal Cancer, Malignant Melanoma, Sarcoma

Projects in progress:

• National population-based Cancer Registry
  • Population Based Cancer Survival (Concord-3)
• Hospital-based Cancer Registry
• National Study of Opium and Cancer Study (IROPICAN)
  • Multicenter Study (3200 Cancers/3200 Controls)
  • Lung, Colorectal, Head and Neck, and Bladder Cancers
  • Environmental Exposure
  • Biological Samples
  • National and International Collaboration
• IRWPCAN (Water-pipe and Cancer)
  • Esophageal, Head and Neck, and Bladder, and Lung Cancers
• BRCA1/2 (Breast Cancer) study
  • 1000 Cases/1000 Control
• BRCA1/2 testing for 450 Cases

Workshops and training programs:

Several national workshops have been organized by CRC. The prominent lecturers are invited from the universities focused on cancer research. The workshops bring together researchers, postgraduate students and practitioners from all over Iran, actively involved in clinical and basic research. Some of workshops were held at CRC are as below:

1. Nutrition in cancer patients, 2017
2. Population based cancer registry survival analysis workshop, 2016
3. Population-based Cancer Registry, IARC workshop, 2015
4. Genetic Epidemiology, 2014

Congress and Seminars

• Annual Cancer Institute Congress
• Biannual International Congress on Cancer Prevention and Early Detection

Journal of Basic and Clinical Cancer Research:

Basic & Clinical Cancer Research is a peer-reviewed, open access journal that aims to publish the highest quality articles on all aspects of cancer research, including research findings about pathophysiology, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancers, and technical evaluations and serves as a discussion forum for cancer scientists (www.bccr.tums.ac.ir).

Secretariat for National Cancer Research Network

The "secretariat for national cancer research network" is based in Iran Cancer Institute which is the center connecting and coordinating more than 40 cancer-related research centers nationwide. By collecting and grouping data on organizations and researchers active in the fields of prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation, and creating the necessary communications and financial and intellectual incentives t can encourage multidisciplinary cooperation in research.  

Cancer Charity

With the help of the faculty member of Iran Cancer Institute, and the donors, the NGO, Donations to Cancer Patients (Cancer Charity) was established in 2013. The goal of the charity was to support various programs related to cancer prevention, early diagnosis, treatment and supportive and palliative care. The entire income of the charity is spent on two major sections: to improve cancer patients' therapeutic states and to support research and education concerned cancer control.

Cancer Biology Research Center

In cancer biology research center we are trying to bring together expertise in basic and clinical science and implementation of interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary basic research in prevention, early detection and treatment of cancer. Testing new methods and medicines and equipment on cancer cells and laboratory animals for researchers or organizations, and companies are among the services of our center. We are trying to translate knowledge from the laboratory to the bedside and intend to provide appropriate models and patterns to be implemented in personalized cancer biology and treatment.

International Collaborators:

• Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
• University of Toronto, Canada
• Morgan State University, USA
• University of Pavia, Italy

Research Interests:

• Preclinical Studies & Experimental Cancer Biology ResearchIn vitro studies
  • Cell culture & Molecular Cancer lab. for Pharmacological/Drug tests and cancer biology
  • Fertility preservation in cancer patients
  • Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis
• In vivo studies (Animal Tests)
  • Laboratory animal care units for conventional and immune-deficient mice.
  • Units for experimental surgery and Pathology and physio-pharmacology tests unit
  • Animal models: Syngenec, Xenograft and Patient derived xenograft (PDX) tumors.

Projects in Progress:

• Experimental studies on carcinogenicity of opium
• NGS-panel testing for 48 BRCA negative breast cancer patients with HBOC selection criteria
  • Cost effectiveness of BRCA1/2 testing in Iranian high risk population
• Pre-implantation Genetic Testing (PGD) for BRCA gene mutation carriers
• Familial Breast Cancer RegistryHereditary Cancers
  • Breast Cancer
  • Colorectal Cancer
  • Stomach Cancer

Radiation Oncology Research Center

Cancer is one the most important health challenges in Iran and radiotherapy is one the main modalities in cancer treatment like chemotherapy and surgery. Based on evidences, bout 60-70% of cancer patients need radiotherapy. Iran is not an exception in increasing cancer cases, therefore existing of research center to work on new methods and technology of radiotherapy and to improve cancer survival patients is a need. In 2014, the Radiation Oncology Research Center was established in Iran Cancer Institute and affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences.

Research Interests

• Ionizing radiation in cancer treatment
• Ionizing radiation health effects
• Interaction of ionizing radiation in vivo (radiobiology, genetics, molecular biology etc)
• Medical engineering (dosimetry radiotherapy)
• Clinical oncology
• Simulation radiotherapy
• Treatment design