Introduction

The most common oral cavity cancer in India is buccal mucosal carcinoma. The high incidence of buccal mucosa carcinoma in our country is due to the widespread use of tobacco in different forms, and the locally advanced cancers account for about 70 percent of the cases at presentation^[1-5].

Although the cancer can be visualized immediately on clinical evaluation, it is difficult to assess its deeper extension

With the advent of Computed Tomography (CT), the staging of buccal mucosa tumours has become more accurate, leading to proper treatment planning and execution.

The advent of computed tomography (CT) has made the staging of buccal mucosal tumors more precise, leading to proper treatment planning and execution.

There are several international consensus recommendations for the treatment of oral cavity cancers, but none of them specifically address buccal mucosal cancers.

Clearly, there is an urgent need to formulate consensus statements for the management of buccal mucosa carcinoma based on Indian data and experience, which would not only incorporate the available evidence but would also be practicable in Indian hospitals.

1. National Cancer Registry Programme, ICMR: Three year report of PBCRs 2006-2008.
2. National Cancer Registry Programme, ICMR: Consolidated report of Hospital Based Registries 2004-2006.
3. Parkin DM, Bray F, Ferlay J, Pisani P. Estimating the world cancer burden. Int J Cancer 2001 Oct 15; 94(2):153- 6.
4. Pradhan SA. Surgery for the cancer of the Buccal Mucosa. SeminSurgOncol. 1989; 5(5): 318-21.
5. Iyer SG, Pradhan SA, Pai PS, Patil S. Surgical treatment outcomes of localized squamous carcinoma of Buccal Mucosa. Head Neck 2004 Oct; 26(10): 897-902.

Dr Sapna Patel

Assi Prof, Dept of Radiology, GCRI