Racial disparity in stage at diagnosis and survival among adults with oral cancer in the US

A selection of abstracts of clinically relevant papers from other journals. The abstracts on this page have been chosen and edited by Dr Trevor Watts.

Abstract

Black males in the USA have lowest survival rates for oral cancer.

Main

Shiboski CH, Schmidt BL et al. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol 2007; 35: 233–240

From 1992-2001, cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx was the 4th commonest malignancy in the USA. This study explored a large database (SEER) from 1973-2002 in relation to relative ethnic survival rates.

During the period, 46,855 cases of oral cancer were reported. Among black adults, 60% of tongue and 50% of floor of mouth tumours were >4 cm at diagnosis; among whites, respective rates were 44% and 40%. Larger tumour size at any oral site was commoner among black people (P < 0.001). Respective oral cancer 5-year survival rates were higher among white men and women than black men and women. For instance, tongue rates from 1988-2002 were 0.53 and 0.59 for white men and women, and 0.31 and 0.39 for black men and women.

The authors consider that delayed diagnosis is responsible for the lower survival rates in black men and women, and recommend targeted screening strategies.