Researchers linked strongly increased risks for oral tongue cancers with inflammatory tongue conditions, which preceded cancer diagnosis by several years, according to a study published in the Journal for Clinical Oncology. The study team assessed the correlation of inflammatory tongue conditions with the risk for cancers of the oropharynx, oral tongue, and other oral cavities among individuals aged 65 or older. They led a case-control study that included 2,534 oral tongue cancers, 6,832 other oral cavity cancers, 9,373 oropharyngeal cancers, and 200,000 controls within the SEER-Medicare data set. The researchers examined Medicare records to identify patients with clinically diagnosed inflammatory tongue conditions and oral precancers and observed that the incidence of inflammatory tongue conditions was significantly higher in patients with tongue cancer when compared with controls (6.0% vs 0.6%; OR adjusted for age, sex, race, Medicare, and precancer, 5.8 [95% CI, 4.7-7.2]). These findings underscore “the need for increased clinical surveillance among patients with such apparently benign diagnoses,” the authors wrote.
