RESUMO
Oral cancer is a significant global health concern, with a high mortality rate mainly due to late-stage diagnosis. Early detection plays a critical role in improving patient outcomes, highlighting the need for non-invasive and accessible screening methods. Salivary biomarkers have emerged as a promising avenue for oral cancer detection, leveraging advancements in human DNA and RNA analysis. Several DNA-based biomarkers, such as genetic mutations, chromosomal aberrations, and epigenetic alterations, have shown promise in detecting oral cancer at various stages. Likewise, RNA-based biomarkers, including microRNAs, long non-coding RNAs, and messenger RNAs, have demonstrated potential for diagnosing oral cancer and predicting treatment outcomes. The integration of high-throughput sequencing technologies, such as next-generation sequencing and transcriptomic profiling, has enabled the identification of novel biomarkers and provided deeper insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying oral cancer development and progression. Despite the promising results, challenges remain in standardizing sample collection, establishing robust biomarker panels, and validating their clinical utility. Nevertheless, salivary biomarkers hold great promise as a non-invasive, cost-effective, and accessible approach for oral cancer detection, ultimately leading to improved patient outcomes through early diagnosis and intervention. The analysis of genetic material obtained from saliva offers several advantages, including ease of collection, non-invasiveness, and the potential for repeated sampling. Furthermore, saliva reflects the physiological and pathological status of the oral cavity, making it an ideal source for biomarker discovery and validation. This article presents a comprehensive review of the current research on salivary biomarkers for oral cancer detection, focusing on insights gained from human DNA and RNA analysis.
RESUMO
OSCC (Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma) is a major health challenge in many parts of the world. It occurs most commonly in males and is associated with tobacco, pan, or areca nut consumption. One of the major challenges associated with the management of OSCC is late diagnosis. As a result, the treatment required is more aggressive, expensive, and has poor prognostic value. On the other hand, early diagnosis of OSCC can be life-saving with less aggressive treatment and a better prognosis. A diagnostic method for early diagnosis of OSCC is greatly needed. A lot of research efforts have been made to identify biomarkers that can act as tools to classify the tumor status of the patient. Various biological fluids and tissues have been explored for such studies. Saliva appears to be the most attractive biological sample with many potential advantages over other matrices such as blood or tissue. Saliva as a diagnostic fluid has the advantage of ample availability, being non-invasive and being in the vicinity of the tumor, and having a less complex composition. Our paper provides an updated review of the state of the art of research in the area of salivary biomarkers for oral squamous cell carcinoma. The paper gives an account of methods for saliva collection, followed by a brief description of various protein biomarkers discovered to date, along with their status quo.
