BACKGROUND: Intraoral lesions clinically suspicious for cancer/precancer should be biopsied and diagnosed histopathologically. We evaluated whether the frequency of oral cancer (OC) cases diagnosed in Puerto Rico (PR) is disproportionately high relative to the frequency of persons with histopathologic diagnoses that would have appeared clinically suspicious for OC/precancer at biopsy. METHODS: All pathology reports for oral (ICD-O-3 C01-C06) soft tissue biopsies generated during 1/2004-5/2005 by seven PR and two New York City (NYC) pathology laboratories were reviewed. The analysis was restricted to persons diagnosed with invasive oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), epithelial dysplasia, or hyperkeratosis/epithelial hyperplasia (HK/EH), i.e., diagnoses associated with lesions clinically suspicious for OC/precancer. The OC relative frequency measured the percentage of persons diagnosed with OSCC among persons with OSCC, dysplasia, or HK/EH. OC relative frequencies for PR and NYC laboratories were compared. RESULTS: Overall, the OC relative frequency was 67% in PR and 40% and 4% in the NYC general and oral pathology laboratories, respectively (each p<0.001). In PR, the OC relative frequency was highest for males (80%). When OC relative frequencies were stratified by pathology laboratory type (general/oral) and compared across PR and NYC, age/gender-specific OC relative frequencies were always higher in PR; however, differences were consistently statistically significant for males only. CONCLUSION: A disparity in the OC relative frequency exists in PR vs. NYC indicating a shortfall in biopsying potentially precancerous oral lesions in PR. PR residents with intraoral lesions suspicious for oral cancer/precancer are most likely to be biopsied only after developing an invasive OC.
BACKGROUND: Intraoral lesions clinically suspicious for cancer/precancer should be biopsied and diagnosed histopathologically. We evaluated whether the frequency of oral cancer (OC) cases diagnosed in Puerto Rico (PR) is disproportionately high relative to the frequency of persons with histopathologic diagnoses that would have appeared clinically suspicious for OC/precancer at biopsy. METHODS: All pathology reports for oral (ICD-O-3 C01-C06) soft tissue biopsies generated during 1/2004-5/2005 by seven PR and two New York City (NYC) pathology laboratories were reviewed. The analysis was restricted to persons diagnosed with invasive oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), epithelial dysplasia, or hyperkeratosis/epithelial hyperplasia (HK/EH), i.e., diagnoses associated with lesions clinically suspicious for OC/precancer. The OC relative frequency measured the percentage of persons diagnosed with OSCC among persons with OSCC, dysplasia, or HK/EH. OC relative frequencies for PR and NYC laboratories were compared. RESULTS: Overall, the OC relative frequency was 67% in PR and 40% and 4% in the NYC general and oral pathology laboratories, respectively (each p<0.001). In PR, the OC relative frequency was highest for males (80%). When OC relative frequencies were stratified by pathology laboratory type (general/oral) and compared across PR and NYC, age/gender-specific OC relative frequencies were always higher in PR; however, differences were consistently statistically significant for males only. CONCLUSION: A disparity in the OC relative frequency exists in PR vs. NYC indicating a shortfall in biopsying potentially precancerous oral lesions in PR. PR residents with intraoral lesions suspicious for oral cancer/precancer are most likely to be biopsied only after developing an invasive OC.
Authors: Douglas E Morse; Walter J Psoter; Taína De La Torre Feliciano; Gustavo Cruz; Nayda Figueroa Journal: Am J Public Health Date: 2008-05-29 Impact factor: 9.308
Authors: Douglas E Morse; Carmen M Vélez Vega; Walter J Psoter; Himilce Vélez; Carmen J Buxó; Linda S Baek; Augusto Elias; Melba Sánchez Ayendez Journal: BMC Public Health Date: 2011-05-26 Impact factor: 3.295
Authors: Walter J Psoter; Douglas E Morse; Melba Sánchez-Ayendez; Carmen M Vélez Vega; Maria L Aguilar; Carmen J Buxó-Martinez; Jodi A Psoter; Alexander R Kerr; Christina M Lane; Vincent J Scaringi; Augusto Elias Journal: J Cancer Educ Date: 2015-06 Impact factor: 2.037
Authors: Lin Li; Walter J Psoter; Carmen J Buxó; Augusto Elias; Lumarie Cuadrado; Douglas E Morse Journal: BMC Cancer Date: 2011-07-29 Impact factor: 4.430
Authors: Esther Erdei; Li Luo; Huiping Sheng; Erika Maestas; Kirsten A M White; Amanda Mackey; Yan Dong; Marianne Berwick; Douglas E Morse Journal: PLoS One Date: 2013-11-20 Impact factor: 3.240