The NIH’s National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) wants cancer patients and health professionals to know that proper mouth care can prevent or minimize oral complications and enhance both survival and quality of life. NIDCR, through its National Oral Health Information Clearinghouse (NOHIC), has launched a national awareness campaign about oral complications of cancer treatment, called Oral Health, Cancer Care and You: Fitting the Pieces Together, that provides free materials to patients and health professionals about how to prevent or reduce these potentially serious oral complications.

Of the 1.2 million Americans diagnosed with cancer each year, more than 400,000 will develop oral complications from their treatment. Complications of the mouth are most common in patients receiving head and neck radiation, bone marrow transplants, or certain types of chemotherapy.

• Many cancer patients develop mouth problems during treatment.

• Side effects in the mouth can not only make it hard to eat, talk, and swallow but also can interfere with your treatment.

• Oral complications of cancer treatment can be short-term or linger for years.

• Proper oral health care can prevent or reduce the severity of many mouth problems.

These conditions can be so bad that patients may only be able to tolerate lower, less effective doses of anticancer medications, may postpone treatments, or may stop treatment entirely. Oral side effects can also be the source of infections that can interfere with cancer treatment and even threaten survival.

But cancer patients, working with their health care providers, can do a lot to prevent these problems or to reduce their severity, if they occur.

NIDCR’s materials provide patients with the tools they need to take charge of their oral health care. They explain the importance of seeing a dentist to ensure a healthy mouth before cancer treatment begins and how to care for the mouth during and after radiation or chemotherapy to help prevent complications. Written in an easy-to-read style, the materials provide practical self-care tips on such problems as keeping the mouth moist, brushing and flossing when the mouth is sore, and avoiding foods that could cause injury and pain.

The campaign is being conducted in partnership with NIH’s National Cancer Institute and National Institute of Nursing Research, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Friends of the NIDCR, a nonprofit organization that advocates for oral health research and education.—a report from the NIH Word on Health, October 1999.

For more information on oral complications of cancer treatment, please contact:

• Radiation Treatment and Your Mouth
• Chemotherapy and Your Mouth
• Who’s on My Cancer Care Team?
• Three Good Reasons To See a Dentist