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Mouth cancer is the deadliest oral disease. Despite advances in surgical and radiotherapy treatment, half of the patients die within five years of diagnosis. Even following initial successful treatment, prognosis is compromised by the late presentation of advanced tumours and widespread multi-focal cancer disease throughout the mouth.

To mark the 2019 World Oral Health Day on March 20, Wednesday, researchers at the Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Unit, Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) shares the latest trend and figures of mouth cancer to raise public awareness and knowledge of this lethal disease.

Professor Peter Thomson, Clinical Professor in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery HKU Faculty of Dentistry said: “In the 21st Century, the incidence of mouth cancer is reaching epidemic proportions with 300,000 new cases detected globally every year, including 40,000 in China alone. Statistics from the Hong Kong Cancer Registry showed a rising trend of mouth cancer in Hong Kong with a 70% increase from 394 cases in 1996 to nearly 700 cases in 2016.” (Figure 1)

Principally a squamous carcinoma arising from the mucosal lining of the oral cavity, most tumours in the mouth pass through a stage of ‘pre-cancer’ which can be identified during standard oral examination by dentists. This offers important opportunities for intervention and curative treatment, while the transformation of normal mouth lining into cancer is poorly understood.

However, according to the 2014 data source of Census and Statistics Department, less than half of Hong Kong people had dental check-ups regularly. Fewer than 37% of those in the high risk group aged 45 or above visited their dentists regularly. (Figure 2).

“Mouth cancer patients are often diagnosed only when the disease is advanced and incurable,” Professor Thomson added. He said early suspicious signs of cancer or pre-cancer change include non-healing mouth ulcers, red and white mucosal patches and unexplained swellings within the mouth or in the neck, which can be easily detected by a dental professional.

The strategies that prevention really is better than cure when it comes to halting the progress of this life-threatening oral disorder are confirmed in Professor Thomson’s new book “Oral Cancer – From Prevention to Intervention “.

The HKU Oral Oncology Research Group led by Professor Thomson will continue to work to improve understanding of the cause and development of mouth cancer, to identify the population in Hong Kong most at risk, and to apply effective primary, secondary and tertiary preventive strategies to target disease at the earliest possible stage, and to facilitate minimal interventional treatment.

Research team members
Professor Peter Thomson, Clinical Professor in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, HKU Faculty of Dentistry
Professor Peter Thomson is the Clinical Professor and Head of the Discipline of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery in the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Hong Kong. A UK and Australian specialist in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery and Oral Medicine, Professor Thomson has researched extensively into the prevention and early diagnosis of mouth cancer, and pioneered interventional management techniques to treat potentially malignant ‘pre-cancer’ disease. He has published and presented over 250 research papers in oral cancer and is an internationally recognised authority on the causes and development of oral cancer.

Dr Choi Siu Wai, Research Associate of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, HKU Faculty of Dentistry
Dr Choi Siu Wai is a Research Associate of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery in the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Hong Kong. She trained as a biochemist in the UK and specialises in the search for biomarkers which signals early disease and can aid in early diagnosis. She has published over 80 research papers on her research interests of chronic disease and statistics in medicine.

Journal article 'Oral cancer in Hong Kong: identifying and managing the "high-risk" population' by Peter Thomson, Richard Su, Siu-Wai Choi

Media enquiry:
Faculty of Dentistry, The University of Hong Kong
Ms Eva Tang, External Relations Manager (Tel: 2859 0494 / Email: epytang@hku.hk)

Communications and Public Affairs Office, The University of Hong Kong
Ms Melanie Wan (Tel: 2859 2600 / Email: melwkwan@hku.hk)