While radiotherapy saves the lives of many oral cancer patients, they face a lifetime of post-treatment complications, including severe tooth breakdown. University of Missouri-Kansas City research is changing the dental care of cancer patients across the country; more than 43,000 Americans are diagnosed with oral cancer each year.
The U.S. Oncology Network, one of the largest networks of integrated community cancer care practices, adopted UMKC’s research. The network’s most recent radiotherapy treatment planning document, referencing UMKC research, is distributed widely to hundreds of radiation oncology clinicians.
“It’s very gratifying to see UMKC research being used to enhance oral cancer care,” said Mary Walker, associate dean for research and graduate programs at the UMKC School of Dentistry. “The outcomes from studies such as ours reinforce the importance and benefits of research teams that integrate basic and clinical science to address relevant health questions.”
UMKC School of Dentistry researchers, including Walker, who was the principal investigator, Yong Wang, Jeffrey Gorski, Jacob McGuire and Ying Liu, collaborated with Karen Williams, UMKC School of Medicine; An-Lin Cheng, UMKC School of Nursing and Health Studies; and Ganesh Thiagarajan, UMKC School of Computing and Engineering. They worked with Brian Wichman, James Coster and Steven Howard of the U.S. Oncology Network.
Reviewed 2015-03-30