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Updated: Jun 5, 2026

Oral Health Assessment by Lay Personnel for Older Adults
Published on: February 2, 2020
Inverse association between toothbrushing and upper aerodigestive tract cancer risk in a Japanese population
Fumihito Sato1, Isao Oze, Daisuke Kawakita
1Division of Epidemiology and Prevention, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute.
Background:
Oral hygiene is attracting increasing attention as a potential risk factor for cancers. To investigate the association between toothbrushing frequency and upper aerodigestive tract (UADT) cancer, the authors conducted a large-scale case-control study.
Methods:
A total of 856 UADT cancer case participants and 2696 age- and sex-matched control subjects without cancer were included. Edentulous or participants with unknown frequency of toothbrushing or number of remaining teeth were excluded. Associations were assessed by odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals in logistic regression models with adjustment for potential confounders.
Results:
Compared with toothbrushing once per day, the adjusted odds ratio for brushing twice or more was 0.82 (95% confidence interval: 0.68, 0.99) whereas that for not brushing was 1.79 (0.79, 4.05). This association was observed especially in subjects who had a history of heavy smoking or drinking.
Conclusions:
The authors suggest that toothbrushing could have a protective effect for UADT cancer.
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