Name
Oral Rinse Assay to Aid in the Diagnosis of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma including Review of the literature evidence from three independent European clinical studies.
Description

Objectives: 

  • To understand that HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer incidence rates are increasing across the world.
  • To review pathogenesis and clinical characteristics of HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer and traditional oral and oropharyngeal cancer
  • To understand current prevention and early detection strategies for oral and oropharyngeal cancer
  • To provide an update on ongoing studies investigating specific tumor markers total protein and CD44 in oral and oropharyngeal cancer early detection

Oral cavity and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma, commonly known as mouth and throat cancer, make up the great majority of cancers in the head and neck region. While traditional risk factors for these cancers include tobacco, alcohol and areca nut use, the last few decades have seen a striking increase in another major risk factor for oropharyngeal cancer, oncogenic HPV infection. Cancers caused by traditional etiologies are marked by progressive carcinogen induced mutations, leading to field cancerization and tumor progression and generally have a worse prognosis than the HPV related cancers. With improvements in smoking cessation in many developed countries, human papillomavirus infection is becoming the most important risk factor and is responsible for the increasing incidence of oropharyngeal cancer. Tobacco, alcohol and areca nut use continue to be the major risk factors for oral and oropharyngeal cancers across the world and particularly in parts of Asia. Regardless of etiology, oral and oropharyngeal cancer would be treated more successfully if diagnosed at an earlier stage. The current gold standard for screening, physical exam has limited sensitivity and specificity. Methods for early detection and assessment of oral potentially malignant disorders include visual and tactile oral examination, the use of light-based adjuncts such as autofluorescence and narrow-band imaging, vital staining, cytopathologic platforms, salivary based molecular/ proteomic tests, and other novel emerging technologies. Soluble CD44 and total protein are proteomic markers that are associated with oral and oropharyngeal cancer and poor prognosis. The markers can be elevated very early in the disease process. Studies are ongoing to determine whether these markers aid early detection and will be presented in this session.