Oral Cavity Carcinoma: Current Management, Controversies, and Future Directions

Oral cavity carcinoma (OCC) remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with head and neck cancer. Although the incidence has decreased over the last decade, outcomes remain stagnant with only a 5% improvement in overall survival in the last 20 years. Although surgical resection remains the primary treatment modality, several areas of controversy exist with regard to work-up, management of the primary and neck tumors, and adjuvant therapy. As surgical techniques evolve, so has the delivery of radiotherapy and systemic treatment, which have helped to improve the outcomes for patients with advanced disease. Recently, the addition of cetuximab has shown promise as a way to improve outcomes while minimizing toxicity, and this remains an active area of study in the adjuvant setting. Advances in microvascular free-flap reconstruction have extended the limits of resection and enabled enhanced restoration of function and cosmesis. While these advances have led to limited survival benefit, evaluation of alternative modalities has gained interest on the basis of success in other head and neck subsites. Organ preservation with definitive chemoradiotherapy, though proven in the larynx and pharynx, remains controversial in OCC. Likewise, although the association of human papillomavirus is well established in oropharyngeal carcinoma, it has not been proven in the pathogenesis or survival of OCC. Future study of the molecular biology and pathogenesis of OCC should offer additional insight into screening, treatment selection, and novel therapeutic approaches.