Study Links Specific Bacteria to Early Signs of Oral Cancer

Supported by Dublin Dental University Hospital, Irish researchers at Trinity College Dublin and the University of Dublin are reporting a possible link between specific bacteria and oral leukoplakia — a condition that often precedes the diagnosis of oral cancer. This assertion is based on research into bacteria and oral leukoplakia, a condition that can present as a white patch growth. Given that oral cancer is the eighth most common cancer globally, the team set out to determine whether certain bacteria were associated with oral leukoplakia. The hope is that understanding the manifestation of such growths in their earliest stages will help improve oral cancer survival rates.

Published in Frontiers in Microbiology, the paper, “The Microbiome of Potentially Malignant Oral Leukoplakia Exhibits Enrichment for Fusobacterium, Leptotrichia, Campylobacter, and Rothia Species,” notes that certain bacteria were more abundant on white patches in the oral cavity. These microorganisms are often found in colon cancer patients, and researchers believe they may also trigger the progression of oral cancer. Further studies are underway to better understand this relationship and determine whether antibiotics may prevent such growths from becoming malignant.