Correlation of Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy with Atypical Oral Cellular Changes: A Cytological Study in Cancer Patients

Background: Oral cancer is a prevalent global health issue, with chemotherapy and radiation therapy commonly used in its treatment. Methods: This study aimed to investigate the correlation between oral cytological changes and exposure to chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. A total of 111 participants were included, consisting of 75 cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy (case group) and 36 healthy individuals (control group). Results: Participants' ages ranged from 15 to 70 years. Pap stain analysis revealed that 15.3% of samples exhibited acute inflammation, with 18.7% in the treatment group and 8.3% in healthy individuals. Among chemotherapy dose groups, varying degrees of atypia were observed, with a higher incidence of atypia associated with increased chemotherapy dose. Similarly, radiation therapy doses showed an increase in atypical cellular changes with higher doses. Conclusions: Chemotherapy and radiation therapy were found to influence atypical cellular changes and inflammatory infiltration in the oral cavity. The incidence of atypia was observed to increase with higher doses of chemotherapy and radiation therapy.