Oral Diseases (2011) 17 (Suppl. 1), 7–22 Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the oral and oropharyngeal region is the sixth most common malignancy in the world today. Despite numerous advances in treatment, long‐term survival from this disease remains poor. Early detection can decrease both morbidity and mortality associated with this neoplasm. However, screening for potentially malignant disease is typically confounded by difficulty in discriminating between reactive/inflammatory lesions vs those lesions that are premalignant in nature. Furthermore, the histologic diagnosis of dysplasia can be subjective and is thus prone to a considerable range of interpretation. Similarly, no definitive, validated criteria exist for predicting which dysplastic lesions are most likely to progress to cancer over time. Given this state of science, the presence of dysplasia can only be used to indicate that an oral lesion may have an increased risk of malignant transformation. Molecular biomarkers capable of identifying the subset of lesions likely to progress to cancer are required to eliminate this clinical diagnostic dilemma. The purpose of this review is to assess the current state of knowledge regarding genetic/epigenetic alterations observed in oral mucosal premalignancy. In addition, recommendations for future research studies directed at defining the predictive capacity of specific biomarkers in this modeling are presented.

In summary, our findings suggest that the provision of regular and adequate soap rations, even in the absence of a behaviour modification or education programme, can play an important role in reducing diarrhoea in refugee populations. If subsequent study confirms the soap as a cheap and effective measure to reduce diarrhoea, its provision in adequate amounts should be a high priority in refugee settings.

BACKGROUND Ovarian cancer is one of the leading cancers in Indian women. The current standard of care is a combination of surgical staging, maximal surgical effort to achieve cytoreduction, and judicious use of chemotherapy. Multimodality therapy can reduce mortality, but the practice and uptake of such therapy in Indian Institutions are not up to the desired level. OBJECTIVES To study the protocol adherence for ovarian cancer management along with patient compliance and evaluate their effects on survival. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The retrospective study obtained and analyzed data from records of patients operated for ovarian cancer at a Regional Cancer Center in eastern India between January 2002 and December 2006. RESULTS: The records of 202 patients were evaluable. None of the patients who had primary surgery outside the institute had staging information. A substantial number of patients operated at the institute had incomplete surgical staging, inadequate information on residual disease after surgery, and incomplete histology report. Only 20.3% patients could have optimal cytoreduction after surgery. Compliance to chemotherapy was poor. The median overall survival time and disease-free survival time were 24 months and 5 months, respectively. The residual disease after surgery significantly affected the overall survival, but not the disease-free survival. Incomplete chemotherapy was found to adversely affect survival after adjusting for advanced stage and bulky residual disease. CONCLUSION: Management of ovarian cancer is suboptimal even in the specialized cancer institute. Poor patient compliance to chemotherapy is one of the major factors adversely affecting survival from advanced ovarian cancer.

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