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Background: Despite the achievements of the national program for the prevention and control of diabetes (NPPCD) over the past two decades, the available evidence indicates a high prevalence of this disease in Iran. This qualitative study aims to investigate barriers to the NPPCD by pursuing the perspectives of relevant policy-makers, planners, and healthcare workers. Methods: A grounded theory approach was used to analyze participants' perceptions and experiences. Semistructured interviews (n=23) and eight focus groups (n=109) were conducted with relevant policy-makers, planners, and healthcare workers in charge of Iran's national diabetes management program. Of the 132 participants, ages ranged from 25 to 56 years, and 53% were female. Constant comparative analysis of the data was conducted manually, and open, axial, and selective coding was applied to the data. Results: Two main themes emerged from data analysis: implementation barriers and inefficient policy-making/planning. Insufficient financial resources, staff shortage and insufficient motivation, inadequate knowledge of some healthcare workers, and defects in the referral system were recognized as the NPPCD implementation barriers. Inappropriate program prioritizing, the lack of or poor intersectoral collaboration, and the lack of an effective evaluation system were the inefficient policy-making/planning problems. Conclusion: Current results highlighted that inefficient policy-making and planning have led to several implementation problems. Moreover, the key strategies to promote this program are prioritizing the NPPCD, practical intersectoral collaboration, and utilizing a more efficient evaluation system to assess the program and staff performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Breast cancer is among the most common malignancies in women around the world. There is evidence of high prevalence of serum/blood Vitamin D deficiency in Iranian women. Considering the multitude of factors that may be involved in the prognosis and lifespan of breast cancer patients, this study investigated the level of Vitamin D in Iranian patients with nonmetastatic breast cancer. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out on 214 women diagnosed with breast cancer, who were referred to the radio-oncology department. Serum Vitamin D level of the patients was measured. Prognostic factors were determined based on demographic and pathological characteristics. The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics tests, Chi-square, one-way analysis of variance, Kaplan-Meier, and Cox regression model in SPSS v22. For all cases, the significance level was considered to be P < 0.05. Results: The total mean of 25-hydroxyvitamin D serum level was 25.15 ± 17.68 ng/ml. There was no significant relationship between levels of Vitamin D with disease stage, tumor size, tumor grade, estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (P > 0.05). The mean survival time was 5 years and 45 days. Conclusion: No relationship was found between serum Vitamin D levels and the factors affecting the prognosis of nonmetastatic breast cancer. The Cox analysis showed that the survival time was not influenced by Vitamin D as a prognosis factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gastrointestinal (GI) cancers are among the main reasons for cancer death globally. The deadliest types of GI cancer include colon, stomach, and liver cancers. Multiple lines of evidence have shown that angiogenesis has a key role in the growth and metastasis of all GI tumors. Abnormal angiogenesis also has a critical role in many non-malignant diseases. Therefore, angiogenesis is considered to be an important target for improved cancer treatment. Despite much research, the mechanisms governing angiogenesis are not completely understood. Recently, it has been shown that angiogenesis-related non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) could affect the development of angiogenesis in cancer cells and tumors. The broad family of ncRNAs, which include long non-coding RNAs, microRNAs, and circular RNAs, are related to the development, promotion, and metastasis of GI cancers, especially in angiogenesis. This review discusses the role of ncRNAs in mediating angiogenesis in various types of GI cancers and looks forward to the introduction of mimetics and antagonists as possible therapeutic agents., Competing Interests: M.R.H. declares the following potential conflicts of interest. Scientific Advisory Boards: Transdermal Cap, Inc., Cleveland, OH, USA; BeWell Global, Inc., Wan Chai, Hong Kong; Hologenix, Inc., Santa Monica, CA, USA; LumiThera, Inc., Poulsbo, WA, USA; Vielight, Toronto, ON, Canada; Bright Photomedicine, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Quantum Dynamics, LLC, Cambridge, MA, USA; Global Photon, Inc., Bee Cave, TX, USA; Medical Coherence, Boston, MA, USA; NeuroThera, Newark, DE, USA; JOOVV, Inc., Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN, USA; AIRx Medical, Pleasanton, CA, USA; FIR Industries, Inc., Ramsey, NJ, USA; UVLRx Therapeutics, Oldsmar, FL, USA; Ultralux UV, Inc., Lansing, MI, USA; Illumiheal & Petthera, Shoreline, WA, USA; MB Lasertherapy, Houston, TX, USA; ARRC LED, San Clemente, CA, USA; Varuna Biomedical Corp., Incline Village, NV, USA; Niraxx Light Therapeutics, Inc., Boston, MA, USA. Consulting; Lexington Int., Boca Raton, FL, USA; USHIO Corp., Japan; Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany; Philips Electronics Nederland B.V., Eindhoven, Netherlands; Johnson & Johnson, Inc., Philadelphia, PA, USA; Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH, Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Stockholdings: Global Photon Inc., Bee Cave, TX, USA; Mitonix, Newark, DE, USA. All other authors declare no competing interests., (© 2021 The Author(s).)