A recent study from All India Institute Of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Delhi found that oral healthcare plays a significant role in improving health-related outcomes, including those linked to cancer. The researchers highlighted the importance of including oral care practices not only at the primary levels but throughout all health management. The study was published in The Lancet Regional Health - Southeast Asia earlier this month.
Oncologists Dr Abhishek Shankar and Dr Vaibhav Sahni from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi said in an article that studies have pointed that poor oral health is linked to several health problems, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, adverse pregnancy outcomes and Alzheimer's disease.
Oral health has been implicated in cancer risk and its prediction, particularly in head and neck cancers (HNC). The current literature also suggests a link between periodontal disease, also known as gum disease, and cancers of the digestive tract, prostate, breast, pancreas, oropharynx, uterus, and lungs.
The researchers said that the presence of pathogenic oral bacteria such as Porphyromonas gingivalis and Prevotella intermedia has been shown to elevate cancer incidence and adversely affect overall survival whether with specific-cancer or disease-free.
A recent systematic review concluded that radiotherapy (RT) to the head and neck region significantly alters the oral microbiome, typically reducing beneficial bacteria while increasing potentially harmful species, leading to post RT complications, the research suggested.
Patients with severe periodontal disease undergoing intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), with or without chemotherapy, have shown higher susceptibility to post-treatment bone healing complications, the researchers said.
These findings make it imperative to maintain optimal oral hygiene before, during and after RT, given its role in influencing survivorship outcomes, they added.
Data from the CHANCE study revealed that routine dental visits over the past 10 years were associated with reduced cancer mortality, according to the research.
"It is abundantly clear that oral healthcare plays a significant role in enhancing health-related outcomes, including those related to cancer survivorship.
This evidence underscores the necessity of integrating oral health practices not only at the primary care level but throughout all healthcare settings," the doctors said.
Efforts should focus on innovating and implementing point-of-care diagnostics in oral health that are evidence-based, economical, validated, and offer sufficient sensitivity and specificity, they stressed.
(With PTI inputs)
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