A quantitative review of oral cancer research from Pakistan.

Objectives: Oral cancer is the most common cancer among men and second only to breast cancer among women in Pakistan. For the effective control and prevention of oral cancer, Pakistan needs to recognize the importance of research and evidence generation which can inform policy making and planning and implementation of intervention programs. The objective of this review is to quantify oral cancer research output in Pakistan with a view to temporal, geographical and focal trends.
Methods: A systematic electronic search in “Medline”, “ISI-Web of Science” and “Pakmedinet”, supplemented by a google search, was carried out in January and February, 2014, to identify literature from Pakistan relevant oral cancer. The selection of publications for the review was carried out according to preset criteria. Data were recorded and analyzed using Microsoft Excel.
Results: 166 publications comprising 62 case series, 36 cross sectional, 31 case control, 10 basic laboratory research, eleven reviews and two trials, were included in this review. 35 % of the publications focused on risk factors for oral cancer. COMSATS Institute of Information Technology was the institution with the highest contribution.
Conclusions: There is a lack of research in the field of oral cancer research in Pakistan. Focused efforts should be put in place to improve both quality and quantity of oral cancer research in the country.