Assessing Oral Cancer Knowledge and Awareness among Dental Patients of Bengaluru City, India

Background Oral cancer (OC) is prevalent in India, with serious social and economic ramifications on the public, often resulting in poverty and societal imbalance. Knowledge of the risk factors and signs and symptoms may reduce the OC burden on the society. Objectives To assess the knowledge regarding risk factors and clinical indicators in early detection and prevention of OC among dental patients. Methods A hospital-based cross-sectional study, interviewer-administered questionnaire was conducted among 540 adult patients attending the outpatient department of dental hospital. The questionnaire contained items about participants' characteristics, including demographics, education level, and knowledge about major risk factors: use of tobacco products, alcohol, diet/nutrition, family cancer history, oral hygiene habits and dental aspects, and clinical presentation of OC. The SPSS software was used to analyze the data, and the significance threshold was set at p = 0.05. The subjects were counseled immediately after completion of the questionnaire regarding tobacco cessation, and was given advice on diet, oral hygiene maintenance, and other lifestyle modifications. Results A solid understanding of signs and symptoms was demonstrated by 72%. However, two-thirds of this group were unaware of the symptoms associated with OC. As for OC risk factors such as tobacco use and heavy alcohol consumption, 61.6% expressed good knowledge. Of the total, 38.3% reported visiting a dentist at least once a year for dental issues in the past 3 years, yet none of them had undergone OC screening. Additionally, less than 10% of the patients received OC counseling or tobacco cessation intervention from a dentist. Conclusion Knowledge of OC risk factors and signs and symptoms were average, which may adversely affect the practices regarding prevention and early detection.