Self Awareness of Oral Potentially Malignant Disorders and Oral Cancer Among High-Risk Patients

This study aims to investigate self-awareness of individuals, regarding oral potentially malignant disorders and oral cancer, who are at higher risk of developing them because of their adverse habits.

Demographic data from 500 patients was noted and subjects were interviewed for adverse habits, using a structured questionnaire. As part of the interview, six questions regarding awareness of OPMD and oral cancer were asked and responses were noted on 3-point-scale (yes/no/ not sure). The subjects’ awareness of risk factors and their knowledge of clinical symptoms as possible indicators of OPMD and oral cancer were also assessed. A standardized oral mucosal examination was performed according to WHO (1997) guidelines. Awareness of the presence/absence of OPMD was assessed using 4 questions which were confirmed by histopathologic analysis.

Awareness of oral cancer was 70.4%, but only 33.4% for OPMD. Statistically significant differences in awareness among different age groups, gender, level of education, monthly income and type of tobacco use were observed. The majority of subjects were not aware of the symptoms of oral cancer and of OPMD. 77% and 60% subjects were aware that tobacco and alcohol consumption are risk factors for oral cancer but only 14% and 8.6% were aware of these as risk factors for OPMD. 45.4% of the study population had OPMD while 50.6% were aware of it.

Knowledge of oral cancer and OPMD was poor among subjects with high risk of developing oral cancer, indicating an urgent need to implement public health education and promotion strategies