Press Release

The UMDNJ-New Jersey Dental School is a founding member institution of the Oral Cancer Consortium, which is sponsoring the fourth annual Oral Cancer Screening in New Jersey and New York. Individuals participating in the screenings will receive a comprehensive oral cancer examination administered by a dental professional. If a suspicious looking spot or sore is found, the dental professional may administer a painless brush biopsy test to determine if potentially cancerous cells are present.

"Early detection of oral cancer significantly improves survival and cure rates for many patients," according to Dr. Michael Glick, professor and chair of the Diagnostic Sciences Department at the UMDNJ-New Jersey Dental School.

Early detection is key to increasing the survival rate for oral cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and plays a significant role in patients' success in fighting the disease. However, only 15 percent of the population report having had an oral cancer examination and only seven percent report receiving annual screenings.

"Early detection plays an important role in the success of treating many other cancers," said Dr. Arnold H. Rosenheck, assistant dean for Hospital Affairs and Institutional Development at the UMDNJ-New Jersey Dental School. "It isn't any different with oral cancer. Our goal is to increase awareness of oral cancer and encourage people not only to become more aware of the spots and sores in their mouths, but also to discuss oral cancer with their dentists. Since testing is now painless, it is simpler than ever to know for sure."

The OralCDx brush biopsy system, which is manufactured by Oral Scan Laboratories, Inc., in Suffern, N.Y., will be used to obtain a sample of the oral cells. The attending dentist will place the tissue specimen from the brush on a clear slide, which then will be sent to a laboratory for analysis. A special computer-assisted analysis will determine whether the tissue from the lesion contains cancerous cells. Referrals for treatment will be made for patients with abnormal results.

The consortium, which consists of metropolitan area health care institutions and professional societies in the New York/New Jersey area, is committed to educating residents about the signs and risk factors associated with oral cancer, a disease that claims the life of one person per hour and kills more Americans each year than cervical cancer or skin cancer.

Oral cancer affects more than 30,000 Americans annually, claiming approximately 8,000 lives. Tobacco users and those who consume large amounts of alcohol are at higher risk for developing oral cancer; however, 25 percent of oral cancer patients are not in this high risk category. Unlike breast cancer, lung cancer and colon cancer, the mortality rate for oral cancer has not improved in decades.

For more information call 973-972-4839 at the UMDNJ-New Jersey Dental School in Newark and at University Dental Center in Somerdale, call 856-566-6000.

The University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) is the state's university of the health sciences. UMDNJ comprises New Jersey's only three medical schools, the only dental school, a school of health related professions, a school of nursing, a school of public health, and a school of biomedical sciences on campuses in Newark, Piscataway/New Brunswick, Camden and Stratford. UMDNJ also operates University Hospital, Newark, and University Behavioral HealthCare, a statewide network. It is affiliated with more than 200 institutions of health care and higher education in New Jersey.

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