Time to Recurrence of Ameloblastoma and Associated Factors in a Multi-institutional Black Patient Cohort

Ameloblastoma is a highly recurrent odontogenic neoplasm with variable global distribution. However, impact of race and ethnicity on ameloblastoma recurrence are still unclear. The primary aim of this study was to assess duration of time between primary and recurrent ameloblastomas in a predominantly Black multi-institutional patient cohort and secondarily to determine whether recurrent ameloblastomas are more readily discovered when clinically-symptomatic rather than by radiographic surveillance. A retrospective cross-sectional design was used to evaluate demographic, clinical, and pathological information on recurrent ameloblastomas patients. Outcome variable was time to recurrence, determined as period between the diagnosis of primary and recurrent ameloblastomas. We assessed associations between outcome variable and race, time lapse between primary and recurrent ameloblastomas and clinical symptoms of recurrent ameloblastomas at time of diagnosis. Among 115 recurrent ameloblastomas identified, 90.5% occurred in adults, 91.3% in Blacks, and similarly, 91.3% were conventional ameloblastomas. About 41% affected the posterior mandible. 93.9% were clinically symptomatic at time of presentation while 6.1% non-symptomatic lesions were discovered by routine diagnostic radiology. Median time to presentation of recurrent tumor was significantly longer in females (90 months, p = 0.016) and clinically symptomatic group of ameloblastoma patients (75 months, p = 0.023). Ameloblastoma recurrence was distinctively high in Black patients, occurred faster in males than females and was located mostly in the posterior mandible. Concomitant with delayed access to healthcare of Black individuals, routine post-surgical follow-up is essential because time lag between primary and recurrence tumors was longer in clinically symptomatic ameloblastomas at the time of diagnosis.