Oral Cancer and Complications of Cancer Therapies
Course #50683 -
- Participation Instructions
- Review the course material online or in print.
- Complete the course evaluation.
- Review your Transcript to view and print your Certificate of Completion. Your date of completion will be the date (Pacific Time) the course was electronically submitted for credit, with no exceptions. Partial credit is not available.
Millions of people are diagnosed with a variety of malignant neoplastic lesions each year. Oral cancer, in which the primary malignancy arises within the oral cavity, is the 8th most common cancer in men and the 14th most common cancer in women. The common element among this diverse patient group are the problems encountered post-surgically when chemotherapy and or radiotherapy are used to destroy malignant cells, which can remain after the completion of surgery. Malignant lesions in the oral cavity are usually treated by surgical removal and several weeks of radiotherapy. The latter modality can cause severe changes in the mucosal tissues, bone, salivary glands, and the teeth, most of which are irreversible. Proper management before, during, and after both modes of therapy will have a positive impact on the quality of life and decrease the morbidity associated with these treatment regimens. This course will discuss the changes experienced within the oral environment during and after the treatment for oral and systemic cancers. Methods to mitigate these problems and to decrease the morbidity and the mortality which afflict these patients will be reviewed.
- INTRODUCTION
- ORAL CANCER
- DIAGNOSTIC PROCEDURES FOR ORAL CANCER
- LESION DIAGNOSIS
- CLASSIFICATION AND STAGING OF ORAL MALIGNANCIES
- TREATMENT FOR ORAL CANCER
- ORAL COMPLICATIONS FROM RADIOTHERAPY
- SURGERY AND RADIOTHERAPY: DENTAL CONSIDERATIONS
- ORAL COMPLICATIONS FROM CHEMOTHERAPY
- CHEMOTHERAPY: DENTAL CONSIDERATIONS
- CONSIDERATIONS FOR NON-ENGLISH-PROFICIENT PATIENTS
- CONCLUSION
- RESOURCES
- Works Cited
- Evidence-Based Practice Recommendations Citations
This course is designed for all dental professionals.
Problematic oral changes can affect more than oral health, and healthcare professionals should consider individuals' oral health in their overall patient care plans. The purpose of this course is to define oral cancer and briefly explain its diagnostic criteria as well as discuss the changes experienced within the oral environment after the treatments for oral and systemic cancers are initiated.
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:
- Identify the most common etiologies of oral cancer and its incidence within the population.
- Review the basic histology of the oral mucosa and the changes that occur with premalignant and malignant lesions and their patterns of occurrence.
- Compare and contrast erythroplakic lesions and leukoplakic lesions.
- Distinguish among the varied diagnostic procedures for suspicious oral lesions and the classification and staging of those that are found to be malignant.
- Review the principles of and the complications from radiotherapy utilized postsurgically for patients with oral cancer.
- List dental procedures that should be completed before surgery and radiotherapy that can minimize oral complications after the completion of these treatment modalities.
- Explain the basic principles by which chemotherapeutic agents exert their cytotoxic effect.
- Discuss the serious chemotherapy-induced infections of oral origin that can be disseminated systemically.
- List other common oral effects of chemotherapy.
Mark J. Szarejko, DDS, FAGD, received his dental degree from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1985. He received fellowship from the Academy of General Dentistry in 1994.
Contributing faculty, Mark J. Szarejko, DDS, FAGD, has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
William E. Frey, DDS, MS, FICD
The division planner has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
Sarah Campbell
The Director of Development and Academic Affairs has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
The purpose of NetCE is to provide challenging curricula to assist healthcare professionals to raise their levels of expertise while fulfilling their continuing education requirements, thereby improving the quality of healthcare.
Our contributing faculty members have taken care to ensure that the information and recommendations are accurate and compatible with the standards generally accepted at the time of publication. The publisher disclaims any liability, loss or damage incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents. Participants are cautioned about the potential risk of using limited knowledge when integrating new techniques into practice.
It is the policy of NetCE not to accept commercial support. Furthermore, commercial interests are prohibited from distributing or providing access to this activity to learners.
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The role of implicit biases on healthcare outcomes has become a concern, as there is some evidence that implicit biases contribute to health disparities, professionals' attitudes toward and interactions with patients, quality of care, diagnoses, and treatment decisions. This may produce differences in help-seeking, diagnoses, and ultimately treatments and interventions. Implicit biases may also unwittingly produce professional behaviors, attitudes, and interactions that reduce patients' trust and comfort with their provider, leading to earlier termination of visits and/or reduced adherence and follow-up. Disadvantaged groups are marginalized in the healthcare system and vulnerable on multiple levels; health professionals' implicit biases can further exacerbate these existing disadvantages.
Interventions or strategies designed to reduce implicit bias may be categorized as change-based or control-based. Change-based interventions focus on reducing or changing cognitive associations underlying implicit biases. These interventions might include challenging stereotypes. Conversely, control-based interventions involve reducing the effects of the implicit bias on the individual's behaviors. These strategies include increasing awareness of biased thoughts and responses. The two types of interventions are not mutually exclusive and may be used synergistically.