Annual Report 2022
Department of Dentistry
Takao Ueno, Wakako Yatsuoka, Takeo Kanayama, Akiko Mori, Kaya Yoneyama, Chie Asano, Yuko Terade, Miki Fukuda, Ryoko Ohnuki, Nanako Yamazaki, Miho Komuro, Mayu Iyoda
Introduction
Oral complications are common in patients receiving chemotherapy or undergoing radiation therapy of the head and neck.
Oral complications during cancer treatment are directly linked to ingestion problems, and may even act as a source of various infections such as aspiration pneumonia, thereby exacerbating systemic conditions, and sometimes preventing the completion of cancer treatment with negative effects on treatment prognoses. The oral health status of patients with cancer is associated with the incidence rate and degree of severity of oral complications. Effective oral hygiene management before initiating cancer treatment can help reduce oral complications such as mouth sores, oral mucositis, or dental infections, and provide important support to facilitate smooth cancer treatment.
The Team and What We Do
To prevent or reduce oral complications, we check for complications during cancer treatment in the oral conditions of the patients, identify the patients at risk and start preventive measures before cancer therapy begins.
Our routine activities for cancer patients are:
1) Management of oral complications of high-dose chemotherapy and/or stem cell transplantation before treatment begins
2) Prevention and treatment of oral complications during chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy
3) Perioperative dental management to prevent postoperative pneumonia with oral, pharynx and esophageal surgery
4) Construction of prostheses for restoring postoperative facial defects
5) Prevention and treatment of medication-associated osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ)
6) Cooperation between medical departments and dentistry to solve dental problems of cancer patients.
Total number of patients: 14,694
Total number of new patients: 2,321
Education
Lectures and practice training on oral health care were regularly held for nurses and residents.
Future Prospects
We aim to create a new system to strengthen collaboration with nurses, with an emphasis on preventive dental interventions, and conduct screening of oral cavity problems.
We will also continue contributing to medicine- and dentistry-related collaborations with cancer care hospitals in the region.