Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology and Oral Radiology
Oral medicineOnline only articleA mucoepidermoid carcinoma in a young man with intellectual disability: review of oral cancer in people with intellectual disability
Section snippets
Case Report
A 36-year-old man with severe ID, living in an institution, was referred for a lump on the right posterior region of the mandible. He was the issue of a normal pregnancy and was in good health during infancy. At 18 months of age, he developed varicella encephalitis, which led to ID. At 6 years of age, he developed herpetic encephalitis, resulting in epilepsy and a regressive left hemiplegia. A lumbar scoliosis was surgically corrected during childhood. His parents were in good physical and
Review of the Literature
The search of the literature was conducted on PubMed using the words “cancer,” “carcinoma,” “sarcoma,” “lymphoma,” “malignant tumor,” “neoplasm,” “malignancy” and “intellectual disability,” “mental retardation,” “learning disability” and “oral region,” “mouth,” “lip,” and “tongue.” Additionally, one of us (MN) searched articles on oral cancer in PWIDs in the Japanese medical literature. These searches were conducted on the basis of a long-standing survey of the literature on cancer in PWIDs for
Frequency and risk factors
Oral cancer accounts for nearly 3% of all malignancies.26 In PWIDs, who correspond to 2% of the global population, we could find only 27 cases after an extensive search and long-standing follow-up of the literature. These cases are probably an underestimation because in some epidemiologic studies on cancer incidence and cancer mortality, oral tumors are pooled with pharyngeal tumors. Nonetheless, given that other cancers, particularly those of the digestive tract and those of the central
Conclusions
Oral tumors are rare in PWIDs and usually are found at an advanced stage and, in our review, in younger patients compared with the general population. The treatment of oral cancer in PWIDs is difficult, requiring good knowledge of the underlying condition and special skills to communicate with these persons and understand their symptoms, evaluate their pain, and obtain their consent to treatment.
References (46)
- et al.
Validation of a pain evaluation scale for patients with severe cerebral palsy
Eur J Pain
(2001) - et al.
Xeroderma pigmentosum: a review and case series
J Craniomaxillofac Surg
(2010) Global epidemiology of oral and oropharyngeal cancer
Oral Oncol
(2009)- et al.
Health characteristics and behaviors of adults with mental retardation residing in three living arrangements
Res Dev Disabil
(1995) - et al.
A review of inherited cancer syndromes and their relevance to oral squamous cell carcinoma
Oral Oncol
(2001) - et al.
Xeroderma pigmentosum, trichothiodystrophy and Cockayne syndrome: a complex genotype–phenotype relationship
Neuroscience
(2007) - et al.
Oral and neurocutaneous phenotypes of familial tuberous sclerosis
Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod
(2011) - et al.
Oral cancer: clinical features
Oral Oncol
(2010) - et al.
Pain expression and stimulus localisation in individuals with Down's syndrome
Lancet
(2000) - et al.
Carcinoma of the tongue: a case series analysis of clinical presentation, risk factors, staging, and outcome
Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol Endod
(2004)
Challenges in treating patients with Down's syndrome and testicular cancer with chemotherapy and radiotherapy: the Royal Marsden experience
Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol)
Cancers in persons with intellectual deficiency: current data
Cancer incidence among people with intellectual disability
J Intellect Disabil Res
The incidence of cancer in people with intellectual disabilities
Cancer Causes Control
Inequalities in oral health for children with disabilities: a French national survey in special schools
PLoS ONE
Cancer and intellectual disability: a review of some key contextual issues
J Appl Res Intellect Disabil
Awareness on oral cancer in people with intellectual disability
Oral Oncol
Overgrowth of oral mucosa and facial skin, a novel feature of aspartylglucosaminuria
J Med Genet
Carcinoma of the tongue in a child: report of case
J Oral Surg
Cancer and mental retardation
Bristol Med Chir J
Carcinoma of a minor salivary gland in an 18-month-old child: case report
Plast Reconstr Surg
Epidermoid carcinoma of the oral cavity following diagnostic roentgenographic examination in a patient with ataxia-telangiectasia
Clin Prev Dent
Cancer and mental handicapA further study (1976–85)
Br J Psychiatry
Cited by (0)
Competing interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.