TY - JOUR
T1 - Global oral health inequalities in incidence and outcomes for oral cancer
T2 - causes and solutions.
AU - Johnson, N. W.
AU - Warnakulasuriya, S.
AU - Gupta, P. C.
AU - Dimba, E.
AU - Chindia, M.
AU - Otoh, E. C.
AU - Sankaranarayanan, R.
AU - Califano, J.
AU - Kowalski, L.
PY - 2011/5
Y1 - 2011/5
N2 - The mouth and oropharynx are among the ten most common sites affected by cancer worldwide, but global incidence varies widely. Five-year survival rates exceed 50% in only the best treatment centers. Causes are predominantly lifestyle-related: Tobacco, areca nut, alcohol, poor diet, viral infections, and pollution are all important etiological factors. Oral cancer is a disease of the poor and dispossessed, and reducing social inequalities requires national policies co-ordinated with wider health and social initiatives - the common risk factor approach: control of the environment; safe water; adequate food; public and professional education about early signs and symptoms; early diagnosis and intervention; evidence-based treatments appropriate to available resources; and thoughtful rehabilitation and palliative care. Reductions in inequalities, both within and between countries, are more likely to accrue from the application of existing knowledge in a whole-of-society approach. Basic research aimed at determining individual predisposition and acquired genetic determinants of carcinogenesis and tumor progression, thus allowing for targeted therapies, should be pursued opportunistically.
AB - The mouth and oropharynx are among the ten most common sites affected by cancer worldwide, but global incidence varies widely. Five-year survival rates exceed 50% in only the best treatment centers. Causes are predominantly lifestyle-related: Tobacco, areca nut, alcohol, poor diet, viral infections, and pollution are all important etiological factors. Oral cancer is a disease of the poor and dispossessed, and reducing social inequalities requires national policies co-ordinated with wider health and social initiatives - the common risk factor approach: control of the environment; safe water; adequate food; public and professional education about early signs and symptoms; early diagnosis and intervention; evidence-based treatments appropriate to available resources; and thoughtful rehabilitation and palliative care. Reductions in inequalities, both within and between countries, are more likely to accrue from the application of existing knowledge in a whole-of-society approach. Basic research aimed at determining individual predisposition and acquired genetic determinants of carcinogenesis and tumor progression, thus allowing for targeted therapies, should be pursued opportunistically.
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U2 - 10.1177/0022034511402082
DO - 10.1177/0022034511402082
M3 - Article
C2 - 21490236
AN - SCOPUS:84860389173
SN - 0895-9374
VL - 23
SP - 237
EP - 246
JO - Advances in dental research
JF - Advances in dental research
IS - 2
ER -