Oral squamous cell carcinoma in post-transplant patients

Patients on immunosuppressant therapy after transplantation have an increased risk of developing cutaneous squamous cell carcinomas. The risk of developing solid tumors of the upper aerodigestive tract in this population has been less defined. We present five patients that subsequently developed oral squamous cell carcinoma after transplantation.

Retrospective chart review and literature review.

Three bone marrow and two heart transplant patients were subsequently diagnosed with oral (oral cavity or oropharynx) carcinoma. The timing of diagnosis of oral cancer after transplant ranged from 18 months to 17 years post-transplantation.

Patients with a history of transplantation should be routinely assessed for the potential development of oral neoplastic lesions. Oral squamous cell carcinoma in transplant patients can be more aggressive and clinically mistaken for chronic graft versus host disease. It is therefore reasonable to consider early biopsy in these patients to guide the need for intervention.