Questionnaire-based study related to the level of awareness and knowledge about oral cancer among Turkish patients with dental diseases in 2018

In this study, the awareness and knowledge level of oral cancer (OC) was assessed among a group of patients with dental problems in Turkey. METHODS: 509 individuals at the ages of ≥18 years, who attended to School of Dentistry of the Ordu University, Ordu, Turkey, were included in the study. To assess the respondents’ awareness and knowledge of OC, a self-administered questionnaire with 30 items was used. Some socio-demographic characteristics and smoking/alcohol habits of respondents were also asked. The data were analyzed by calculating percentages, frequency distributions, and chi-square test to assess significance. The statistical significance level was set at P < 0.050. RESULTS: In total, 61.9% of the respondents were informed of OC with no significant differences by sex (P = 0.660). Only 31.6% of the respondents reported knowledge on OC. The respondents who claimed to have some knowledge about OC, identified non-healing ulcer as early sign and smoking as risk factor as 35.4% and 48.4%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The present study indicated an overall insufficiency of awareness and knowledge concerning OC among the subjects among a group of Turkish people with dental problems. It is recommended that effective health education programs be emphasized for the recognition of OC in Turkey.