Prognostic evaluation of oral tongue cancer: means, markers and perspectives (II).

Squamous cell carcinoma of the oral (mobile) tongue (OTSCC) is increasingly regarded as a biologically different entity compared to cancer affecting other oral sites. It is more aggressive and generally associated with a higher rate of metastasis. This is the concluding part of our two-part article that examines the methods by which the behavior and prognosis of OTSCC has been studied, the prognostics markers, and the relevance and future direction of prognostic studies. In this part, we continue our discussion of the histopathologic and molecular prognostic factors, and serum and salivary biomarkers in of OTSCC, and emphasize the need to regard OTSCC as a high risk variant of oral cancer. We conclude with future direction of prognostic studies of OTSCC.