ORAL CANCER SCREENING – THE URGENT NEED FOR CHANGE REGISTRATION FORM Sept 2018 Jones According to the CDC, nearly all sexually active adults will have the HPV infection in their lifetime. This is fueling an escalating rise in the incidence of HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer. By the year 2020, HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer is expected to be the leading HPV-related cancer surpassing cervical cancer. The historic etiologic patterns related to exposure to alcohol and tobacco are declining, while HPV is becoming increasingly more common. What are the implications to dentistry and how should our oral cancer screening be adjusted to compensate for this new profile? There are many questions arising due to this escalation. How is the virus transmitted and once and infection becomes active, will it ever go away? How does an infection transform into a malignancy? Who is at risk? Why are men at least 6x more predisposed to HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer? Above all, how do we communicate this to today’s dental patient? All of these questions and many more will be answered in a frank, open discussion complemented by a guided visual gallery of HPV lesions. High risk extraoral and intraoral anatomical areas will be reviewed well as identifying the subtle life-saving signs that accompany HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer that are so often overlooked. Today’s dental professional needs to be informed and be pro-active. LEARNING OUTCOMES The attendee will be able to: • Understand critical statistical information regarding oral and oropharyngeal cancer that every dental professional needs to know • Discuss the transmission of the virus and the transformation to malignancy • Recognize the critical components of a comprehensive extraoral and intraoral examination and the life-saving subtle symptoms • Identify the dental professional’s role in early discovery of mucosal tissue changes and potentially life-saving outcome through screening methods • Be equipped with clinical and educational resources for your dental practice