Carcinoma of the anterior tongue in adolescence

Abstract

Carcinoma of the oropharyngeal region is one of the most common malignant lesions seen in western India, comprising about 47% of all cases seen at the Gujarat Cancer and Research Institute. Of these, carcinoma of the tongue has the maximum incidence. In India the ratio between carcinoma of the anterior and posterior tongue is 33:66, the reverse of that published in Europe and America. The highest incidence of carcinoma of the anterior tongue appears in males 50 to 60 years of age; only 11 cases have been reported in patients under 20 years of age. From 1969 to 1974, 218 cases of carcinoma of the anterior tongue was seen at the M.P. Shah Hospital. This paper reports five cases of carcinoma of the anterior tongue found in patients under 20 years of age. Although the anterior tongue is a visible and approachable site, all five lesions were too advanced to cure. There did not seem to be any contributory factor to produce this malignant lesion at such a young age. The patients were all male, the youngest 11 years old. Two cases were treated with surgery; one also received postoperative radiotherapy. The remaining three cases were treated with palliative radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The pathology and the current view of management are discussed.

Clinico‐pathological features of squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity in patients <40 years of age

“…The male–female ratio in the total cases treated during the same period was 1.39:1. Some previous studies have suggested that there is a predominance of females in the younger age groups (7, 24), but most have reported a similar higher number of males (2, 3, 15, 16, 25, 26). Analysis by site showed that 54.3% of cancers arose on the tongue in young patients, compared with 30.9% in older patients, supporting previous studies suggesting that tongue may be more commonly affected in younger patients (reviewed in 15).…”

Squamous cell carcinoma of tongue in a 12-year-old child

“…Atual et al [4] in Finland found that percentage of SCC of tongue cases occurring in young adults increased from 3% per year for the decade [1953][1954][1955][1956][1957][1958][1959][1960][1961][1962] to 7% per year for the decade 1983-1992. In India, Patel et al [5] reported 5 cases of SCC of anterior tongue, the youngest of the reported case was 10year-old male child.…”

“…[3] The recent literature has given increasing attention to SCC of tongue in young adults as authors have speculated that the incidence of SCC of tongue is increasing. [4,5] Our understanding regarding the etiology, natural history, and optimal therapeutic management is limited due to rarity of this tumor in pediatric age group. We report a case of SCC of oral tongue in a 12-year-old boy and also review the etiological factor for SCC in pediatric age group.…”

Tongue cancer in younger patients

“…Prognosis varies from excellent to poor, reflecting the biases and difficulties in reporting small retrospective studies (Table 1). 5,[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] In a summary of 14 studies published in the English-speaking literature between 1968 and 1993 involving oral tongue SCC in patients aged less than 40 years old, 152 patients were identified. 26 In 11 of these 14 studies, information regarding loco-regional failure was available, revealing that 57% failed above the clavicles and that 71 (47%) died from their disease.…”