Oral squamous cell carcinoma: clinicopathological features from 346 cases from a single Oral Pathology service during an 8-year period

Abstract

Epidemiological data from oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is mostly derived from North American, European and East Asian populations.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to report the demographic and clinicopathological features from OSCC diagnosed in an Oral Pathology service in southeastern Brazil in an 8-year period.Material and MethodsAll OSCC diagnosed from 2005 to 2012 were reviewed, including histological analysis of all hematoxylin and eosin stained slides and review of all demographic and clinical information from the laboratory records.ResultsA total of 346 OSCC was retrieved and males represented 67% of the sample. Mean age of the patients was 62.3 years-old and females were affected a decade older than males (p<0.001). Mean time of complaint with the tumors was 10 months and site distribution showed that the border of the tongue (37%), alveolar mucosa/gingiva (20%) and floor of mouth/ventral tongue (19%) were the most common affected sites. Mean size of the tumors was 3.4 cm, with no differences for males and females (p=0.091) and males reported both tobacco and alcohol consumption more frequently than females. Histological grade of the tumors revealed that 27%, 40% and 21% of the tumors were, respectively, classified as well-, moderately- and poorly-differentiated OSCC, 26 cases (7.5%) were microinvasive OSCC and 17 cases were OSCC variants. OSCC in males mostly affected the border of tongue, floor of mouth/ventral tongue and alveolar mucosa/gingival, while they were more frequent on the border of tongue, alveolar mucosa/gingival and buccal mucosa/buccal sulcus in females (p=0.004).ConclusionsThe present data reflect the epidemiological characteristics of OSCC diagnosed in a public Oral Pathology laboratory in southeastern Brazil and have highlighted several differences in clinicopathological features when comparing male and female OSCC-affected patients.

Demographic and Clinical Profile of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma from a Service-Based Population

“…Missing data were not considered in the analysis of associations and could affect some of the findings. Lack of information in retrospective studies is common (8,9). Therefore, it is necessary to reinforce the importance of the correct filling by the surgeon of biopsy records sent with the specimens, avoiding the loss of data and minimizing this problem.…”

“…Then, the habits of tobacco and alcohol consumption were registered as dichotomous variables, based on present or past consume of any quantity and frequency (8). The following clinical parameters collected from the files of CDOD were: tumor location (vermilion of lower and upper lip, labial mucosa, lateral border/ventral surface of the tongue, dorsum of the tongue, floor of the mouth, gingiva/alveolar ridge, buccal mucosa, palate and tonsils); tumor size (categorized as up to 2 cm, 2.1-4 cm and over 4 cm) and the reported evolution time of the lesions (up to 6 months, 6.1-12 months and over 12 months).…”

“…Additionally, were registered: pain (dichotomic variable), clinical appearance and lymph node involvement (dichotomic variable). All clinical variables were categorized similarly to Pires et al (8) and Marocchio et al (9).…”

“…Therefore, the knowledge of demographic and clinical profile of OSCC in different populations is important and relevant. In this way, many other studies have approached it, with emphasis on Brazilian surveys (8)(9)(10) and revealed status of important considerations about this disease in specific populations.…”

Oral diseases diagnosis rate during an oral cancer prevention campaign in Fernandópolis, Brazil, 2014

“…For the year 2014, 11,280 new cases were estimated for males, whereas 4,010 new cases were estimated for females in Brazil [9]. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), which develops from the lining epithelium, is the most common malignant lesion affecting oral mucosa, being responsible for nearby 90% of all oral malignancies [21]. Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) relation with harmful habits, such as abusive alcohol drinking and tobacco smoking, is already well established, nevertheless, further factors, as solar radiation chronic exposure and human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, might also be associated to OSCC development [6,8,19,25].…”