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Review
. 2020 Jun 27:2020:9587971.
doi: 10.1155/2020/9587971. eCollection 2020.

Sex Hormones and Inflammation Role in Oral Cancer Progression: A Molecular and Biological Point of View

Maria Contaldo  1 , Mariarosaria Boccellino  2 , Giuseppa Zannini  3 , Antonio Romano  1 , Antonella Sciarra  4 , Alessandra Sacco  5 , Giuliana Settembre  2 , Mario Coppola  2 , Angelina Di Carlo  6 , Luigi D'Angelo  1 , Francesco Inchingolo  7 , Antonia Feola  3 , Marina Di Domenico  2   8
Affiliations
Review

Sex Hormones and Inflammation Role in Oral Cancer Progression: A Molecular and Biological Point of View

Maria Contaldo et al. J Oncol. .

Abstract

Oral cancers have been proven to arise from precursors lesions and to be related to risk behaviour such as alcohol consumption and smoke. However, the present paper focuses on the role of chronic inflammation, related to chronical oral infections and/or altered immune responses occurring during dysimmune and autoimmune diseases, in the oral cancerogenesis. Particularly, oral candidiasis and periodontal diseases introduce a vicious circle of nonhealing and perpetuation of the inflammatory processes, thus leading toward cancer occurrence via local and systemic inflammatory modulators and via genetic and epigenetic factors.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Cancerogenetic changes and inflammatory triggers are both involved in oral cancer onset by a two-way interrelated pathway, involving intrinsic and extrinsic events toward cancerogenesis. The intrinsic factors include genetic and epigenetic phenomena bringing the keratinocyte toward malignant transformation (oncogenes activation/oncosuppressor inactivation) and the production of inflammatory cancer-related mediators that recruit inflammatory cells. The extrinsic pathway is related to an underlying inflammatory/infectious state, which can promote cancerogenesis via the production of inflammatory cytokines that activate a series of transcription factors responsible for tumorigenesis. Both pathways bring toward the production of further phlogistic mediators and cancer-promoting transcription factors, thus creating a microenvironment where inflammation and cancer feed on each other.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schematic representation of the relation between oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), inflammation, and periodontitis. The figure represents the different mechanisms involved in the development of the OSCC in relation to inflammation. The chronic one is correlated to periodontitis disease and may lead to genetic and epigenetic changes like cytokine, SNPs. This mutation involved mainly IL-α and IL-β which are overexpressed.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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