The head and neck region is a complex area composed of several dissimilar structures。Cancers in this region are treated with surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy or a combination of the three modalities。Due to the fa...
详细信息
The head and neck region is a complex area composed of several dissimilar structures。Cancers in this region are treated with surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy or a combination of the three modalities。Due to the fact that there are increasing number of aged and dentate patients that are being treated for oral cancer and to the fact that patients are expecting more from the dental profession with respect to the quality of life which affects their eating, appearance and speech, we are faced with the challenge of providing dental rehabilitation and follow up for this group of patients。At King Hussein cancer Centre we have a head and neck cancer clinic that started in 2003, during the past five years we treated 502 head and neck cancer patients, both adults and paediatrics。These cancers included oral cavity, salivary tumors, sinuses, nasopharyngeal, mandibular and cancers of unknown origin。Many oral problems were encountered ranging from tumor recurrence, restricted mouth opening, radiation caries, xerostomia, osteoradionecrosis and others。Conclusion: It is mandatory to have a well trained dental oncologist among the head and neck team, for timely and proper dental treatment planning and follow up, as well as collaboration between the various medical specialities to ensure early referral to dental clinics。We also believe in the importance of educating these patients about the nature of their disease, complications and the difficulty and time consuming process of dental treatment in this disease。
暂无评论