Epidemiological and Etiological Factors Associated with Oropharyngeal Cancers in Tehran

Oropharyngeal cancer is a significant cause of death and disability worldwide. In Iran it is the 13th and 17th most common cancer found in men and women, respectively. The aim of this study was to investigate etiological factors and clinical features of lesions related to oropharyngeal cancers over a 5-year period in Tehran. In this retrospective cross-sectional descriptive study, 256 cases were selected from 5 clinical and educational cancer centres. Study forms were completed by collecting information from medical records; incomplete files were filled in by contacting patients by phone. The International Classification of Disease for Oncology coding system (ICD-O) was used to determine the type of malignant lesion, and SPSS software was used for data analysis. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) was the most commonly identified lesion (70.3%). The most common site of malignancy in the mouth was the tongue (25.8%). The ratio of disease incidence in men compared with women was almost 2:1. The mean age of patients was 60 years. Alcohol, drug and tobacco consumption were the most important factors in the development of oropharyngeal cancer. The results of this study demonstrated that the most common malignancy in the mouth and pharynx was SCC. As with previous studies, we found that the ratio of disease occurrence was almost 2:1 for men compared with women. Referral of patients to specialized centres will make considerable progress towards controlling and managing these cancers.