Sociodemographic, lifestyle and oral health profile of oral cancer patients attending a cancer treatment facility

Background: Oral cancer remains a significant public health concern, particularly in low and middle-income countries. Behavioural risk factors like tobacco use, poor oral hygiene, and delayed diagnosis contribute to disease burden. This study described the sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle behaviors, and oral hygiene practices of diagnosed oral cancer patients attending a cancer treatment facility. Methods: A retrospective-prospective descriptive study design was adopted. Sample consists of 91 adult oral cancer patients attending the treatment facility during the two-month study period. Data was collected from existing medical records and supplemented through direct assessment of newly attending and follow-up patients. Study excludes unwilling, critically ill and deceased patients with incomplete records. Results: Participants were middle-aged to elderly, largest proportion (40.7%) being 51-60 years, and majorly males (74.7%). High proportion were tobacco smokers (67.0%). 67.2% smoked more than 10 times/day, indicating heavy smoking behavior. Smokeless tobacco use was even more common, reported by 70.3% of participants. Alcohol consumption was low (9.9%). Most common site for cancer was buccal mucosa and buccal vestibule (41.7%). Oral hygiene practices were suboptimal, 3.3% followed the recommended twice-daily brushing. Regular dental visits were low (29.7%), all participants were examined with poor oral hygiene status. Awareness level about oral cancer and its risk factors is high (98.9%) but preventive practices remain low. Conclusions: Our study highlights a high burden of behavioural risk factors along with poor oral hygiene practices. Although awareness levels of oral cancer were high, preventive practices and behavioural modifications remain inadequate.