Unstimulated salivary p53 in patients with oral lichen planus and squamous cell carcinoma.

Unstimulated whole salivary p53 was evaluated in non-involved subjects, in patients suffering from oral lichen planus (OLP) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). A total of 34 patients with OLP, 24 patients suffering from oral SCC and 41 non-involved participants were enrolled. The unstimulated whole saliva p53 level was assayed by ELISA. Data was analyzed by ANOVA followed by the Tukey post hoc test. Saliva  p53  concentration  in  patients  with  SCC  (5.36±1.08)  was  significantly  higher  than  in  healthy participants (0.41±0.04) and in patients suffering from OLP (0.94±0.31). This study could not confirm the precancerous nature of OLP based on the relatively low p53 expressions in comparison to SCC.