New Test Could Enable Dentists to Detect Oral Cancer Faster

Written by Dentistry TodayTuesday, 17 April 2012 15:20



It’s possible that it may take only 20 minutes to diagnose oral cancer.

The new test involves the dentist collecting stem cells from the patients’ mouths and then utilizing a computer program to analyze the diagnosis one way or the other. The whole process takes 20 minutes, light years ahead of the current methods, which include taking a biopsy and then awaiting the results from a lab. The results may not be in for roughly two to three weeks.

Researchers from the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom and researchers from Rice University have been working on a two-year trial. If the trial is a success, the new method will first be utilized in the UK.

The test uses small sensors and biologic agents that are attached to a portable machine. The actual testing device, known as lab on a chip, is about the size of a credit card. The test can be used in dental practices, providing dentists with the opportunity to test for oral cancer at their practice. The patients wouldn’t have to be anxious about the results for a period weeks and, instead, could learn the results that day.

There are 275 people who have signed up for the trial in the UK. There were 20 of those patients that tested positive for oral cancer and didn’t know they had the disease. The current rate of survival for oral cancer (50 percent) may receive a huge increase because of this test. Early treatment of oral cancer can result in about a 90-percent survival rate.

Professor Martin Thornhill, one of the leaders of the study, thinks the test will become a standard part of dentistry in the UK during the next five years. The test is useful because it can test patients who come in for a basic dental checkup or those patients that have an ulcer, a lesion or some reason to suspect they may have oral cancer. Oral cancer can be confirmed or ruled out in a matter of minutes based on this test.

Gums Suffer as People Age

Written by Dentistry TodayThursday, 19 April 2012 07:36



It has recently become clearer why gum health declines with age.

Queen Mary, University of London, along with research teams in the United States, put together a comprehensive study on why gum disease rises with age. The information appeared in Nature Immunology and explained that a decrease in the chemical Del-1 played a major role in gum problems.

The research teams want to learn as much as possible about Del-1 and the way it impacts the rest of the body’s immune system.

Periodontitis is a major problem that results in bleeding and bone loss. When people age, they are more susceptible to diseases and gum problems, such as gum disease.

This research was generated from a study of mice. The researchers concluded that an increase in gum disease in the older mice was associated with a drop in the Del-1 levels. This protein holds back the immune system by preventing white blood cells from sticking to the mouth tissue and attacking it.

Mice that were without Del-1 tended to develop severe gum disease and had elevated levels of bone loss. There were also more white blood cells in the gum tissue. The amount of white blood cells dropped after the gums were treated.

This information could lay the foundation for new treatment or prevention methods for gum disease.

Oral Cancer Detection May Become Easier

Written by Dentistry TodayThursday, 19 April 2012 12:57



A new saliva test may soon make the lives of many people much easier.

A Michigan State University surgeon is collaborating with a dental benefits firm on a trial that would perfect this oral cancer-detecting saliva test. It would make things much simpler for the tester and it would increase the effectiveness of the screening process, meaning more people would be accurately diagnosed with oral cancer and they would be diagnosed sooner in the process.

A professor in the College of Human Medicine Department of Surgery, Barry Wenig, and Delta Dental of Michigan Research and Data Institute will select 100 to 120 patients with white lesions or growths in their mouths to be part of the study.

The researchers will be looking to pinpoint the signs associated with oral cancer. If the saliva test was created, it would enable dentists and physicians to know which patients could avoid surgery.

This is so essential because only about 60 percent of oral cancer patients live more than five years after being diagnosed.

Wenig and the researchers recently worked with a team of UCLA colleagues, who are working on saliva tests for other forms of cancer. The whole key to the saliva test is that all the patient would have to do to generate a sample is spit in a cup—it doesn't get much easier than that.

A secondary benefit that would transpire if the test is successfully created is that healthcare costs could be lowered based on the fact that the number of biopsies would decrease.

Scientists Say No Link Exists Between Gum Disease

Written by Dentistry TodayFriday, 20 April 2012 09:44



Any link between gum disease and heart problems is coincidental, according to a panel of researchers.

The 13 researchers stated that the link between heart problems and gum disease simply doesn't exist based on their extensive research. Many recent studies have concluded that a link does actually exist.

The panel analyzed 500 studies and the basic conclusion was that the people that developed gum disease and heart problems stemmed from the fact that the diseases have similar risk factors.

There are several studies that show that there's a link between the two but the evidence isn't the greatest to make the case. There are also many studies that are inconclusive about the topic.

The more likely reason for people with gum disease developing heart problems is based on lifestyle factors. People that make a concerted effort to take care of their health are less likely than people who take less of interest in their health to develop problems.

Regardless of what conclusions research teams make, it doesn't change the fact that good oral health leads to good overall health.