The Role of Healthcare Providers in Oral and Oropharyngeal Cancer Screening

Author(s): Alexys Ferguson, Aaliyah Gray, Leela Subhashini Choudary Alluri, Krishna Patel, Monica Bean, Kandyce Kirt, Doney Eden, Lauren Jordan, Aleah Jackson, Samuel E. Adunyah, Pandu Gangula, James E. Cade and Zaid H. Khoury

The oral cavity plays a vital role in the early detection and progression of systemic diseases, yet it is often underexamined by primary health care providers during medical evaluations. The global increase in both incidence and mortality rates of oral and oropharyngeal cancer (OC/OPC) highlights the urgent need for interprofessional collaboration of dentists and primary healthcare providers to mitigate this public health burden. Many at-risk patients are diagnosed at advanced stages, largely due to limited awareness among patients and healthcare providers, and a lack of affordability and accessibility to care. This results in a poor quality of life and, in some cases, death. The objective of this paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of head and neck examinations, introduce the application of a simplified oral cancer screening and referral form, and review common benign and oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMDs).