Chemotherapy: oral side effects and dental interventions. A review of the literature

Abstract

Even with the evolution of chemotherapeutic procedures and agents, chemotherapy may cause certain side effects that impair the patients' quality of life. The aim of this review is to isolate and describe the oral side effects arising only from chemotherapy and focus on the dentist's contribution to their management. This paper comprises an extensive literature review of the main side effects affecting the oral health status of patients' undergoing chemotherapy procedures. In addition, it describes the dentist's contribution in the treatment of such patients before, throughout and after antineoplastic therapy. In conclusion, the oral cavity is a usual site of discomfort and pain caused by chemotherapy, making the dentist's contribution to the patient's relief imperative. ABSTRACT Article history: He is a member of European Association of Oral Medicine, International Association of Oral Pathology and International Association for Dental Research. He participated in more than 50 published manuscripts, more than 100 presentations and serves as invited reviewer in more than 15 journals.