Research Grant Will Shed Light On Oral Cancer Progression

Understanding a patient's progression to cancer from various oral lesions is the field of study supported by a grant from the Australian Dental Industry Association (ADIA), the peak business organisation representing manufacturers and suppliers of quality dental products.

Professor Camile Farah and Dr Maryam Jessri from the University of Queensland Centre for Clinical Research have been awarded the 2014 ADIA Research Award that will support their study aiming to identify and understand potentially malignant lesions before they develop into cancer.

The grant is awarded each year to the primary applicant for the highest-ranked research project of those considered by the Australian Dental Research Foundation (ADRF).

"Professor Farah and Dr Jessri's project, Progression from dysplasia to cancer, was considered by the ADRF Research Advisory Committee to be important in developing a fundamental understanding of the progression of cancer due to oral health concerns," said ADIA Chief Executive Officer, Troy Williams.

Currently, no standardised method exists by which a patient can be advised of the likely progression of an oral mucosal lesion to malignancy in clinical dental practice.

"This type of research is significant: while it is well established that oral health is a major factor in the decline of overall health, such as the link to diabetes, there remain numerous areas of concern that, as yet, have not been investigated. This initiative will help shed further light into an important field of health research," Professor Farah said.

Previous studies utilising next generation sequencing in head and neck cancer have had minimal to no emphasis on the early stages of the cancer development process in the first instance. This project is understood to be the very first study comparing progression of oral potentially malignant lesions with oral cancer cells to understand molecular patterns of transformation.

"ADIA is proud to be supporting such an important research initiative. Oral health concerns continue to be a neglected area of focus in Australia, and this study is congruous with ADIA's commitment to supporting the growth and sustainability of Australia's dental industry," said Mr Williams.

The ADRF is jointly supported by ADIA and the Australian Dental Association (ADA) for the purpose of sponsoring dental research towards improving the dental and oral health of the people of Australia.