• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.48 no.7
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• pp.507-512
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• 2010

Today, one in four Koreans dies of cancer. Cancer is fast becoming one of the most serious diseases faced by not only Koreans, but for human kind, and this trend is forecasted to continue in the future. Korean association of oral and maxillofacial surgeons(KAOMS) have founded oral cancer research center since 1995. Now, KAOMS oral cancer research center is playing essential role as headquaters for conquering oral cancer. KAOMS oral cancer research center currently functions in the following areas: 1. performing basic and clinical research on oral cancer 2. promoting oral cancer prevention act 3. offering education and training about cancer treatment for oral and maxillofacial surgeons

• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.146-152
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• 2011

Historically, the screening of patients for signs of oral cancer and precancerous lesions has relied upon the conventional oral examination. A variety of commercial diagnostic aids and adjunctive techniques are developed to potentially assist in the screening of healthy patients for evidence of occult cancerous change. This paper is reviewing the literature associated with current oral cancer screening aids such as spectroscopy, chemoiluminescence, exfoliative cytopathology, vital staining and saliva as a diagnostic tool. Despite the increased public awareness of oral cancer, no technique or technology to date has provided definitive evidence to suggest that it improves the sensitivity or specificity of oral cancer screening beyond clinical oral examination alone.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.24
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• pp.10861-10865
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• 2015

Background: Oral cancer is in increasing in incidence in Yemen and indeed worldwide. Knowledge regarding risk factors and early signs in the general population can help in prevention and early detection of the disease. Purpose: The aim of this study was to assess the level of awareness and knowledge of oral cancer in the general population in Yemen. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey using a self-administered questionnaire was conducted on Yemeni adults aged ${\geq}15$ years old. A total of 543 persons participated, the collected data being analyzed using SPSS software. The significance level was set at p<0.05. Results: Two thirds (71.5%) of the participants had heard about oral cancer. Smoking and smokeless tobacco usage were identified as the major risk factors by 71.5% and 73.7% of the participants, respectively. Only 24.1% and 21.4%, respectively, were able to correctly identify red and white lesions as early signs of oral cancer. Knowledge of oral cancer was significantly associated with age (p<0.01), gender (p<0.05) and education level (p<0.001). Conclusions: The findings suggest that the knowledge regarding oral cancer in this population is low. Therefore, educational programs are highly needed to improve such knowledge.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.97-108
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• 2011

Cancer stem cells have stem cell-like features, such as the ability for self-renewal and differentiation but show unlimited growth because they have the lost normal regulation of cell growth. Cancer stem cells and normal stem cells have similar features. They show high motility, diversity of progeny, robust proliferative potential, association with blood vessels, immature expression profiles, nestin expression, epidermal growth factor (EGF)-receptor expression, phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) expression, hedgehog pathway activity, telomerase activity, and Wnt pathway activity. On the other hand, with cancer cells, some of these signaling pathways are abnormally modified. In 1875, Cohnheim suggested the concept of cancer stem cells. Recently, evidence for the existence of cancer stem cells was identified. In 1994, the cancer stem cells' specific cell surface marker for leukemia was identified. Since then, other specific cell surface markers for cancer stem cells in solid tumors (e.g. breast and colon cancer) have been identified. In oral cancer, studies on cancer stem cells have been performed mainly with squamous cell carcinomas. Oral cancer specific cell surface markers, which are genes strongly expressed in oral cancer and cancer stem cell specific side populations, have been identified. Cancer stem cells are resistant to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Therefore, to eliminate malignant tumors efficiently and reduce the recurrence rate, therapy targeting cancer stem cells needs to be performed. Currently, studies targeting the cancer stem cells' specific signaling pathways, telomerase and tumor vasculatures are being done.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2008

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most frequent form of oral cancer and holds the eighth position in the cancer incidence ranking. OSCC patients are treated by classical therapeutic modalities consisting of surgery, radiotherapy, and/or chemotherapy. But OSCC still shows significant mortality rates. Thus, new therapeutic approaches have been investigated and the most promising one is naturally acquired agents with known anti-cancer effects. Genistein is a compound extracted from soy bean. Its anti-cancer effect on breast cancer is well established now and it is investigated whether it has similar effect on OSCC. It inhibited the growth and invasive-ness of OSCC cells in vitro, but these effects did not work in living animals in vivo. Catechin is a compound from green tea and its anti-cancer effect on OSCC is known better than other agents. Catechin showed its anti-cancer effect in vitro via induction of apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, inhibition of growth, and down-regulation of invasion/metastasis. These effects were confirmed in vivo with mouse model. Cordycepin is one of major pharmacologically important components in Cordyceps Militaris and may exert its anti-cancer effect as an adenosine receptor agonist. In recent study, it inhibited the proliferation of OSCC cells via A3 adenosine receptor. But because there is very scarce evidence on this effect, more researches are needed on this theme.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.388-393
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• 2021

At present, in Korea, due to developments in medicine and technology and an increasing mean lifespan, the expected lifetime for elderly people is increasing (at 70 years, the expected additional lifespan is 14.8 years for males and 18.3 years for females). However, among all causes of death, malignant neoplasm is ranked first for all ages. Further, the incidence rate of oral cancer tends to increase with age. Thus, oral and maxillofacial surgeons have increased opportunity to experience the 'oldest old' patients with oral cancer. Elderly patients commonly have several comorbidities, poor general condition, limited socioeconomic support, fear of various postoperative complications, and perception of short for the rest of their life. In this situation, the patient, caregiver, and surgeon often choose undergraded treatment rather than standard treatment for oral squamous cell carcinoma owing to patient age. In elderly patients with oral cancer, ablation of tumor or reconstructive surgery is challenging for surgeons. Oral and maxillofacial surgeons must evaluate carefully the patient's medical condition and make a decision regarding treatment plans after sufficient discussion with patient and caregivers. We review the literature to consider the factors involved for deciding on a treatment plan regarding surgery in elderly patients with oral cancer.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.39 no.5
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• pp.207-216
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• 2013

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to analyze clinical impact factors on the survival rate, and to acquire basic clinical data for the diagnosis of oral cancer, for a determination of the treatment plan with long-term survival in oral cancer patients. Materials and Methods: Through a retrospective review of the medical records, the factors for long-term survival rate were analyzed. Thirty-seven patients, among patient database with oral cancer treated in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at Pusan National University Hospital within a period from March 1998 to March 2008, were selected within the study criteria and were followed-up for more than 5 years. The analyzed factors were gender, age, drinking, smoking, primary tumor site, type of cancer, TNM stage, recurrence of affected region, and metastasis of cervical lymph node. The 5-year survival rate on the impact factors was calculated statistically using the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: By classification of clinical TNM at the 1st visit, there were 11 (29.7%) cases for stage I, 11 (29.7%) cases for stage II, 3 (8.1%) cases for stage III, and 12 (32.5%) cases for stage IV. The 5-year survival rate of total oral cancer patients after the operation were 75.7%, pathological TNM stage related 5-year survival rate were as follows: stage I 90.0%, stage II 81.8%, stage III 100% and stage IV 45.5%; in which the survival rate difference by each stage was significantly observed. The recurrence of cervical lymph node was the significant impact factor for the survival rate, because only 30.0% the survival rate in recurrent cases existed. During the follow-up, there were 15 (40.5%) patients with confirmed recurrence, and the 5-year survival rate of these patients was decreased as 46.7%. Conclusion: The classification of clinical and pathological TNM stage, local recurrence after surgery, and metastasis of cervical lymph node after surgery were analyzed as the 3 most significant factors.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.8
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• pp.3377-3381
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• 2015

Background: The aim of this study was to assess the level of awareness and knowledge about signs and risk factors of oral cancer in the general population in Saudi Arabia. Materials and Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information from Saudi adults aged 15 years and older. A total of 679 persons participated in the survey. Descriptive statistics were calculated and chi-square tests, t-tests, and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to examine differences between groups. The significance level was set at p<0.05. Results: Only 53.6% of the participants had heard of oral cancer. Smoking and alcohol consumption were identified as the major risk factors by 81.7% and 56.3% of the participants, respectively. Only 22.2% and 18.2%, respectively, were able to correctly identify red and white lesions as early signs of oral cancer. Participants with less than high school education were significantly less aware, and had much less knowledge, of the signs and risk factors of oral cancer (p<0.05). Conclusions: This survey demonstrates a general lack of awareness among the public about oral cancer and a lack of knowledge about its signs and risk factors. There is a clear need to inform and educate the public in matters relating to the known risk factors associated with oral cancer. A media campaign informing the public about oral cancer is clearly required.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.7-12
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• 2005

Purpose: CKD-602, a newly developed water-soluble campthotecin analogue, is a anticancer agent which act as a DNA topoisomerase I inhibitor. CKD-602 is known as more potent and tolerable agent. The main purposes of this study were to measure the cytotoxic effect of CKD-602 on the oral cancer cell lines and to evaluate the apoptotic aspect of dead cells. Materials and Methods: To determine the cytotoxic effect of CKD-602 on the oral cancer cell lines in comparison with various cell lines, such as lung cancer and colon cancer cell lines, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide(MTT) assay was performed. And apoptosis was analyzed using fluorescence-activated cell sorting(FACS) system. Results: CKD-602 decreased the viability of malignant cells in a dose dependent manner and in a time dependent manner. CKD-602 showed excellent cytotoxicity to the oral cancer cell lines. Also, apoptotic portion was increased in a dose dependent manner. Conclusion: These findings indicated that CKD-602 induced apoptotic cell death in the various cell lines including oral cancer cell lines. From the results, it was suggested that CKD-602 would be a potential therapeutic agent for the oral cancer. More successive researches on the anticancer effect of CKD-602 should be performed.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.1765-1770
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• 2015

Background: Oral cancer presents with high mortality rates, and the likelihood of survival is remarkably superior when detected early. Health care providers, particularly dentists, play a critical role in early detection of oral cancers and should be knowledgeable and skillful in oral cancer diagnosis. Purpose: The aim of the present study was to assess the current knowledge of future Yemeni dentists and their opinions on oral cancer. Materials and Methods: A pretested self-administered questionnaire was distributed to fourth and fifth year dental students. Questions relating to knowledge of oral cancer, risk factors, and opinions on oral cancer prevention and practices were posed. Results: The response rate was 80%. The vast majority of students identified smoking and smokeless tobacco as the major risk factors for oral cancer. Most of the students (92.6%) knew that squamous cell carcinoma is the most common form of oral cancer, and 85.3% were aware that tongue and floor of the mouth are the most likely sites. While the majority showed willingness to advise their patients on risk factors, only 40% felt adequately trained to provide such advice. More than 85% of students admitted that they need further information regarding oral cancer. As expected, students of the final year appeared slightly more knowledgeable regarding risk factors and clinical features of the disease. Conclusions: The findings of the present study suggest that here is a need to reinforce the undergraduate dental curriculum with regards to oral cancer education, particularly in its prevention and early detection.