Oral cancer in South Australia—incidence and case survival

Abstract— South Australian cancer registry data for the 1977–80 period indicated that 3.2 per cent of malignant neoplasms occurred in the mouth, over half of them on the lip. The male to female incidence ratio was 3.3:1 for all oral cancers and 6.3:1 for lip cases. The incidence of lip cancer was higher in country areas than in metropolitan Adelaide, and lower for migrants from England and Ireland than among other South Australians. Approximately 85 per cent of oral cancers were squamous cell carcinomas, with mucoepidermoid carcinomas being the next most prevalent type, constituting about four per cent of all cases and 29 per cent of salivary gland tumours. The four‐year survival rate was 69 per cent for all oral cancers, and 84 per cent for lip cases, compared with 41 per cent for all other cancers combined. 1983 Australian Dental Association