Oral cavity cancer accounts for 30% of head and neck cancers and can affect various tissues, including the lining of the mouth and salivary glands. Squamous cell carcinoma is the most common type, while adenoid cystic carcinoma and mucoepidermoid carcinoma are specific to salivary glands. Sarcomas and melanomas can also occur. The cause of oral malignant melanoma is unknown.
The oral cavity is defined as the portion of the body that begins with the lips and ends with the front of the tonsils. Only five percent of cancers reported each year occur in the head and neck area, but as many as 30 percent of these occur in the oral cavity. Cancer that occurs in this area is referred to as oral cavity cancer.
The oral cavity has a number of different tissue types, resulting in different types of oral cavity cancer. Some of the specialized types of tissue include the inside of the lips, salivary glands, jaw, hard palate, teeth, tongue, and lining of the mouth, and while some oral cavity cancers are specific to one type of fabric, others can be found in more areas.
Squamous cell carcinoma, for example, which affects the lining of the oral cavity, is the most common cancer of the oral cavity, making up 95% of all cancers in this area. A carcinoma is a malignant tumor that arises from epithelial cells, those found in the lining tissues of the body. Squamous cell carcinoma is differentiated into subgroups based on the similarity of the cells to normal lining cells. The types are: poorly differentiated, moderately differentiated, and well differentiated.
Several tumors of the oral cavity, such as adenoid cystic carcinoma and mucoepidermoid carcinoma, are specific to the salivary glands. Mucoepidermoid carcinomas make up 35% of salivary gland malignancies, and although this is their primary site, they have also been found in atypical sites including the thyroid gland, lungs, Eustachian tube in the ear, and breast. Similarly, adenoid cystic carcinoma, abbreviated AdCC, although usually grouped with salivary gland tumors, can also arise at a number of other sites. Both of these tumors are referred to as adenocarcinomas because they arise from glandular tissue.
Sarcomas, which are connective tissue cancers, are also found in the oral cavity. These tumors can arise in a variety of oral tissues, including muscle, fat, bone and cartilage. Sarcomas are identified both by the tissue in which they originate and by a grade indicating their likelihood of metastasizing and how aggressively they should be treated.
Melanomas, tumors of melanocytes, are skin cancers. Oral cavity melanomas are not common, but they do exist. Unlike sun-related melanomas, the cause of oral malignant melanoma has not been established, with no proven links to tobacco, alcohol, oral hygiene, or any other specific cause.
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