Oral Cancer Screening among Smokers and Nonsmokers

Qoot Alkhubaizi 1 2, Mai E Khalaf 2, Hussain Dashti 3, Prem N Sharma 4

Affiliations

12 January 2018

-

doi: 10.4103/jispcd.JISPCD_197_18

Abstract

Aims and objectives: The aim of visual systematic screening is early identification of oral cancer (OC) precursor lesion. OC mortality improves when cancer is identified at early stages. This is important in patients whose lifestyle choices render them at higher risk of developing OC. This study described the prevalence of OC screening among smokers and nonsmokers in Kuwait and ascertained demographic predictors.

Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study utilized a self-administered online survey in English and Arabic through Survey Monkey® and disseminated using the social networking app "WhatsApp." The survey included 21 questions on demographics, smoking status, and knowledge of OC. Screening questions were adopted from the Maryland Cancer Screening and Risk Behavior Survey. Data were analyzed using the computer software "Statistical Package for Social Sciences, SPSS version 24.0" (IBM Corp, Armonk, NY, USA).

Results: The study included 404 Kuwaiti respondents, 311 (77%) nonsmokers and 93 (23%) smokers. Prevalence of OC screening was 7.2, 7.7% among nonsmokers and 5.4% in smokers. Only 36.6% were aware of OC, with more nonsmokers (38.9%) than smokers (29%). Logistic regression revealed twice more males likely to go for screening than females and with the likelihood of those being in the age group of 25-44 years four times more (P < 0.012) than other age groups.

Conclusion: There was low prevalence of screening and poor awareness of OC among sampled. Increased efforts are needed by health professionals to spread awareness and improve knowledge on OC and demand the inclusion of screening during their routine and opportunistic oral examinations.

Keywords: Oral cancer; predictors; screening; smoking.

Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Similar articles

Comparative Study using Papanicolaou Stain and Silver-stained Nucleolar Organizer Region Counts in Exfoliative Smear of Oral Mucosa in Bidi Smokers and Nonsmokers.

Mhaske SP, Pattanshetti K, Jagtap K, Debta P, Misurya AL, Patel JH.J Int Soc Prev Community Dent. 2018 Jul-Aug;8(4):365-370. doi: 10.4103/jispcd.JISPCD_65_18. Epub 2018 Jul 18.PMID: 30123772 Free PMC article.

Smoking and cycle control among oral contraceptive users.

Rosenberg MJ, Waugh MS, Stevens CM.Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1996 Feb;174(2):628-32. doi: 10.1016/s0002-9378(96)70440-4.PMID: 8623797 Clinical Trial.

Haemostasis profile in smoking and nonsmoking women taking low-dose oral contraceptives.

Fruzzetti F, Ricci C, Fioretti P.Contraception. 1994 Jun;49(6):579-92. doi: 10.1016/0010-7824(94)90099-x.PMID: 8070263

An epidemiologic survey of cardiovascular disease in women taking oral contraceptives.

Thorogood M, Vessey MP.Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1990 Jul;163(1 Pt 2):274-81. doi: 10.1016/0002-9378(90)90567-q.PMID: 2196799 Review.

Oral contraceptive use and myocardial infarction.

Petitti DB, Sidney S, Quesenberry CP.Contraception. 1998 Mar;57(3):143-55. doi: 10.1016/s0010-7824(98)00016-x.PMID: 9617531 Review.

Cited by

WhatsApp Messenger use in oncology: a narrative review on pros and contras of a flexible and practical, non-specific communication tool.

Gebbia V, Piazza D, Valerio MR, Firenze A.Ecancermedicalscience. 2021 Dec 13;15:1334. doi: 10.3332/ecancer.2021.1334. eCollection 2021.PMID: 35211203 Free PMC article. Review.

Oral cancer knowledge and screening behavior among smokers and non-smokers in rural communities.

Wong TJ, Li Q, Dodd V, Wang W, Bian J, Guo Y.BMC Cancer. 2021 Apr 20;21(1):430. doi: 10.1186/s12885-021-08198-5.PMID: 33879128 Free PMC article.

Lifestyle risk factor related disparities in oral cancer examination in the U.S: a population-based cross-sectional study.

Akinkugbe AA, Garcia DT, Brickhouse TH, Mosavel M.BMC Public Health. 2020 Jan 31;20(1):153. doi: 10.1186/s12889-020-8247-2.PMID: 32005213 Free PMC article.

Expression and clinical significance of miRNA-145 and miRNA-218 in laryngeal cancer.

Guo L, Cai X, Hu W, Hua W, Yan W, Lin Y, Yin S, Chen Y.Oncol Lett. 2019 Jul;18(1):764-770. doi: 10.3892/ol.2019.10353. Epub 2019 May 13.PMID: 31289552 Free PMC article.

KMEL References

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/

References

  1.  
    1. Sankaranarayanan R, Ramadas K, Thara S, Muwonge R, Thomas G, Anju G, et al. Long term effect of visual screening on oral cancer incidence and mortality in a randomized trial in Kerala, India. Oral Oncol. 2013;49:314–21. - PubMed
  2.  
    1. Warnakulasuriya S. Global epidemiology of oral and oropharyngeal cancer. Oral Oncol. 2009;45:309–16. - PubMed
  3.  
    1. Ferlay J, Soerjomataram I, Ervik M, Dikshit R, Eser S, Mathers C, et al. GLOBOCAN 2012 v1.0, Cancer Incidence and Mortality Worldwide: IARC Cancer Base No 11. [Last accessed on 2016 Apr 04]. Available from: http://www.globocan.iarc.fr/Default.aspx .
  4.  
    1. Stewart BW, Kleihues P, editors. World Cancer Report. Lyon: IARC Press; 2003.
  5.  
    1. Al-Jaber A, Al-Nasser L, El-Metwally A. Epidemiology of oral cancer in Arab countries. Saudi Med J. 2016;37:249–55. - PMC - PubMed
  6.  
    1. Ali M, Sundaram D. Biopsied oral soft tissue lesions in Kuwait: A six-year retrospective analysis. Med Princ Pract. 2012;21:569–75. - PubMed
  7.  
    1. Joseph BK. Oral cancer: Prevention and detection. Med Princ Pract. 2002;11(Suppl 1):32–5. - PubMed
  8.  
    1. Peter Boyle P, Bernard L, editors. World Cancer Report. 2008. [Last accessed on 2016 Apr 04]. Available from: http://www.iarc.fr/en/publications/pdfs.online/wcr/2008/
  9.  
    1. World Health Organization. WHO Report on the Global Tobacco Epidemic, 2017: Monitoring Tobacco use and Prevention Policies. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2017.
  10.  
    1. GBD 2015 Tobacco Collaborators. Smoking prevalence and attributable disease burden in 195 countries and territories, 1990-2015: A systematic analysis from the global burden of disease study 2015. Lancet. 2017;389:1885–906. - PMC - PubMed
  11.  
    1. Morris RE, Mahmeed BE, Gjorgov AN, Jazzaf HG, Rashid BA. The epidemiology of lip, oral cavity and pharyngeal cancers in Kuwait 1979-1988. Br J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2000;38:316–9. - PubMed
  12.  
    1. Sciubba JJ. Oral cancer and its detection. History-taking and the diagnostic phase of management. J Am Dent Assoc. 2001;132:12S–8S. - PubMed
  13.  
    1. Sankaranarayanan R, Ramadas K, Thomas G, Muwonge R, Thara S, Mathew B, et al. Effect of screening on oral cancer mortality in Kerala, India: A cluster-randomised controlled trial. Lancet. 2005;365:1927–33. - PubMed
  14.  
    1. Dost F, Do L, Farah CS. Lesion evaluation, screening and identification of oral neoplasia study: An assessment of high-risk Australian populations. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol. 2016;44:64–75. - PubMed
  15.  
    1. Silverman S., Jr Demographics and occurrence of oral and pharyngeal cancers. The outcomes, the trends, the challenge. J Am Dent Assoc. 2001;132(Suppl):7S–11S. - PubMed
  16.  
    1. Downer MC, Moles DR, Palmer S, Speight PM. A systematic review of measures of effectiveness in screening for oral cancer and precancer. Oral Oncol. 2006;42:551–60. - PubMed
  17.  
    1. Brocklehurst P, Kujan O, Glenny AM, Oliver R, Sloan P, Ogden G, et al. Screening programmes for the early detection and prevention of oral cancer. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2010;11:CD004150. - PubMed
  18.  
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey Questionnaire. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2010
  19.  
    1. Abu Shomar RT, Lubbad IK, El Ansari W, Al-Khatib IA, Alharazin HJ. Smoking, awareness of smoking-associated health risks, and knowledge of national tobacco legislation in Gaza, Palestine. Cent Eur J Public Health. 2014;22:80–9. - PubMed
  20.  
    1. Csikar J, Kang J, Wyborn C, Dyer TA, Marshman Z, Godson J, et al. The self-reported oral health status and dental attendance of smokers and non-smokers in England. PLoS One. 2016;11:e0148700. - PMC - PubMed
  21.  
    1. Al-Shammari KF, Moussa MA, Al-Ansari JM, Al-Duwairy YS, Honkala EJ. Dental patient awareness of smoking effects on oral health: Comparison of smokers and non-smokers. J Dent. 2006;34:173–8. - PubMed
  22.  
    1. Joseph BK, Ali MA, Sundaram DB. Awareness of mouth cancer among adult dental patients attending the Kuwait university dental school clinic. J Cancer Educ. 2018;33:340–5. - PubMed
  23.  
    1. Ling H, Gadalla S, Israel E, Langenberg P, Zhan M, Dwyer DM, et al. Oral cancer exams among cigarette smokers in Maryland. Cancer Detect Prev. 2006;30:499–506. - PubMed
  24.  
    1. Macek MD, Reid BC, Yellowitz JA. Oral cancer examinations among adults at high risk: Findings from the 1998 National Health Interview Survey. J Public Health Dent. 2003;63:119–25. - PubMed
  25.  
    1. Viswanath A, Kerns TJ, Sorkin JD, Dwyer DM, Groves C, Steinberger EK, et al. Self-reported oral cancer screening by smoking status in Maryland: Trends over time. J Public Health Dent. 2013;73:261–70. - PMC - PubMed
  26.  
    1. Nagao T, Warnakulasuriya S. Annual screening for oral cancer detection. Cancer Detect Prev. 2003;27:333–7. - PubMed
  27.  
    1. Babiker TM, Osman KA, Mohamed SA, Mohamed MA, Almahdi HM. Oral cancer awareness among dental patients in Omdurman, Sudan: A cross-sectional study. BMC Oral Health. 2017;17:69. - PMC - PubMed
  28.  
    1. Majidi A, Majidi S, Salimzadeh S, Khazaee- Pool M, Sadjadi A, Salimzadeh H, et al. Cancer screening awareness and practice in a middle income country; A systematic review from Iran. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev. 2017;18:3187–94. - PMC - PubMed
  29.  
    1. Oh J, Kumar J, Cruz G. Racial and ethnic disparity in oral cancer awareness and examination: 2003 New York state BRFSS. J Public Health Dent. 2008;68:30–8. - PubMed
  30.  
    1. Riley JL, 3rd, Dodd VJ, Muller KE, Guo Y, Logan HL. Psychosocial factors associated with mouth and throat cancer examinations in rural Florida. Am J Public Health. 2012;102:e7–14. - PMC - PubMed
  31.  
    1. World Health Organization. Health Systems Profile Kuwait. Regional Health Systems Observatory EMRO. Egypt: World Health Organization; 2006.
  32.  
    1. Macpherson LM, McCann MF, Gibson J, Binnie VI, Stephen KW. The role of primary healthcare professionals in oral cancer prevention and detection. Br Dent J. 2003;195:277–81. - PubMed
  33.  
    1. Al-Shammari KF, Al-Ansari JM, Al-Khabbaz AK, Honkala S. Barriers to seeking preventive dental care by Kuwaiti adults. Med Princ Pract. 2007;16:413–9. - PubMed
  34.  
    1. Neville BW, Day TA. Oral cancer and precancerous lesions. CA Cancer J Clin. 2002;52:195–215. - PubMed
  35.  
    1. Wade J, Smith H, Hankins M, Llewellyn C. Conducting oral examinations for cancer in general practice: What are the barriers? Fam Pract. 2010;27:77–84. - PubMed
  36.  
    1. National Center for Health Statistics. Health, United States, 2015: With Special Feature on Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities. National Center for Health Statistics; 2016.
  37.  
    1. The Central Agency for Information Technology. Consolidated Kuwait National ICT Indicators Report. Kuwait: The Central Agency for Information Technology. 2016

Page Navigation