Dental Trauma Examined as Oral Cancer Carcinogen
Dental Trauma Examined as Oral Cancer Carcinogen More than 30,000 new cases of oral cancer are reported each year, with an increasingly high number found in nonsmoking women. Many of the oral squamous cell carcinomas found in nonsmokers occur at
Dental Trauma Examined as Oral Cancer Carcinogen
More than 30,000 new cases of oral cancer are reported each year, with an increasingly high number found in nonsmoking women. Many of the oral squamous cell carcinomas found in nonsmokers occur at different sites than those typically detected in smokers. To help determine the reason for this difference, a team of researchers, led by Brendan J. Perry, BSC, MBBS, of the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane, Australia, sought to examine the relationship between the location of oral cancer lesions in smokers and nonsmokers. The team hypothesized that oral cancer in nonsmokers may occur more frequently at the site of chronic trauma, making recurring oral injury a potential carcinogen in otherwise healthy individuals. Study results were published in the paper “Sites of Origin of Oral Cavity Cancer in Nonsmokers vs Smokers: Possible Evidence of Dental Trauma Carcinogenesis and Its Importance Compared With Human Papillomavirus” in November by the Journal of the American Medical Association Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery.
To determine how the locations of oral cancers differed in smokers vs nonsmokers, the research team analyzed the records of patients with oral and oropharyngeal cancers seen at a hospital in Australia between 2001 and 2011. A total of 724 patients were studied, including 334 with oropharyngeal cancer and 390 with oral cancer. Of the 334 patients with oropharyngeal cancer, 48 patients were lifelong nonsmokers; 266 patients were current smokers; and 20 patients were former smokers. In the 390 patients with oral cancer, 87 had never smoked; 276 currently smoked; and 27 were former smokers.
The researchers found that the tip of the tongue was a common location for oral cancer—though it was most common among nonsmokers. According to the team’s findings, patients with oral cancer who did not smoke had cancer at the lateral edge of the tongue in 66% of cases compared to 33% of cases in smokers/former smokers. Additionally, oral cancer occurred on the gingiva and floor of the mouth in older patients—potentially the result of repetitive irritation from wearing dentures.
The authors report that this information may benefit both oral cancer prevention and treatment efforts, although more data are needed to support the theory.
Hygiene Connection E-Newsletter
December 2014
