A 5 year Epidemiological Study on Oral and Pharyngeal Cancers from Cancer Registration Centers in Tehran

Background: Oral and pharyngeal cancers are among the life threatening medical conditions that cause death and disability, and have variable prevalence in different geographic regions. It is the thirteenth and seventeenth most common cancer among men and women in Iran, respectively. The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiologic factors related to oral and pharyngeal cancers, within a period of 5 years from 2001 to 2006 in clinical and medical educational centers of Tehran. Methods: In this retrospective descriptive cross-sectional study, 256 cases were selected from 5 cancer centers. The forms were filled up by two methods including information collection from completed medical records and completion of incomplete information via calling patients on the phone using ICDOCoding system to determine the type of malignant lesions. The SPSS software was used for data statistical analysis. Results: Among 256 cases of this study, Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC) was the most common lesion (70.3 %) followed by Mucoepidermoid Carcinoma (MEC). The most common site of cancer was the tongue (25.8 %) followed by larynx (15.2 %). The ratio of men to women was 1.8 over 1. The mean age of patients was 40 to 70 years. SCC and MEC had the most recurrence rates and in 23 cases (11.3 %) metastasis were reported, of which 14 cases were SCC. Conclusion: This study found that the most common malignancy in oral cavity and pharynx was SCC similar to the literature and men were almost involved two times more than women. We suggest that medical authorities should be aware of improving the health system in terms of immediate referral to third level health care when oral cavity malignancies are suspected.