Oral Mucosa in Cancer Patients—Putting the Pieces Together: A Narrative Review and New Perspectives

The oral mucosa is a key player in cancer patients and during cancer treatment. The increasing prevalence of cancer and cancer-therapy-associated side effects are behind the major role that oral mucosa plays in oncological patients. Oral mucositis is a debilitating severe complication caused by the...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Reuss, Jose Manuel, Alonso Gamo, Laura, García Aranda, Mariola, Reuss, Debora, Albi, Manuel, Albi, Beatriz, Vilaboa, Debora, Vilaboa, Beatriz
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2023
País:España
Institución:Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM)
Repositorio:Docta Complutense
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:docta.ucm.es:20.500.14352/103682
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/103682
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:616.311
Mucositis
Oral mucosa
Saliactive
Antioxidant
Microbiome boost
Cancer toxicity
Vagina
Breast cancer survivors
Head and neck cancer
Cancer support
Odontología (Odontología)
Oncología
3207.13 Oncología
Descripción
Sumario:The oral mucosa is a key player in cancer patients and during cancer treatment. The increasing prevalence of cancer and cancer-therapy-associated side effects are behind the major role that oral mucosa plays in oncological patients. Oral mucositis is a debilitating severe complication caused by the early toxicity of chemo and/or radiotherapy that can restrict treatment outcome possibilities, even challenging a patient’s survival. It has been referred to as the most feared cancer treatment complication. Predictive variables as to who will be affected, and to what extent, are still unclear. Additionally, oral mucositis is one of the sources of the increasing economic burden of cancer, not only for patients and their families but also for institutions and governments. All efforts should be implemented in the search for new approaches to minimize the apparently ineluctable outburst of oral mucositis during cancer treatment. New perspectives derived from different approaches to explaining the interrelation between oral mucositis and the oral microbiome or the similarities with genitourinary mucosa may help elucidate the biomolecular pathways and mechanisms behind oral mucosa cancer-therapy-related toxicity, and what is more important is its management in order to minimize treatment side effects and provide enhanced cancer support.