New Study on Oral Cancer Features Tobacco Carcinogen

Lab mice developed mutations in their oral tissue and tumors after having the tobacco carcinogen dibenzo(a,l)pyrene injected in their mouths, according to a study that researchers say is an improvement upon previous research that used synthetic carcinogens.

UPI reported May 14 that researcher Joseph Guttenplan of the New York City College of Dentistry and Karam El-Bayoumy of the Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine said that the new method is “significantly better” than using synthetic carcinogens and would be used in future studies.

Guttenplan and El-Bayoumy injected dibenzo(a,l)pyrene, found in tobacco smoke, into the mouths of 104 mice. Mutations appeared in the mouths of some mice within 38 weeks, and after one year 31 percent had developed large tumors, the researchers found.