ABSTRACT
In the developed world, intraoral malignancies are more frequent in males than females. Recent observations from Greece suggest that the number of females is increasing.
Aim The present study investigates gender and age statistics among subjects with cancers of the mouth or leukoplakia.
Methods Five hundred and twelve subjects of Greek origin participated in this analysis. Chiโsquare and logistic regression statistics were used to compare if there are differences in participantsโ gender and age, stratified by histological type.
Results Epithelial cancers and leukoplakia exhibited equal distributions among men and women. Men were diagnosed at a much younger age than women. Our data also indicates a progression in the process of epithelial cancer development, as benign leukoplakia was diagnosed 2โ4ย years earlier than epithelial dysplasia and 8ย years earlier than squamous cell carcinoma (SSC). The same age difference was observed in nonโHodgkin's lymphoma, although the male to female ratio was 3ย :ย 1. In regards to anatomy, 47% of SSC appeared in the tongue. The most prevalent site for the development of nonโHodgkin's lymphoma was the gingival (50%), followed by the palate (40%).
Conclusion Although oral cancer occurs earlier in men than women, the risk of females tends to be similar to that of males.