Douglas E. Morse ^1*, Walter J. Psoter ¹, Taína De la Torre Feliciano ², Gustavo Cruz ¹, Nayda Figueroa ²

¹ New York University
² Puerto Rican Central Cancer Registry

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: dem5{at}nyu.edu.

	Abstract

We evaluated a possible disparity in the detection of very early oral cancers in Puerto Rico relative to the United States. The percentage of in situ (noninvasive) cases among all oral cancer cases was calculated separately for Puerto Rico and the United States using population-based cancer registry data (1992–2001). In situ cancers constituted 1.2% of oral cancer cases in Puerto Rico and 3.4% in the United States (P <.001). These findings suggest a disparity in very early oral cancer detection in Puerto Rico compared with the United States.

Key Words: Cancer, Community Health, Dental/Oral Health, Hispanics/Latinos