Picking Away at the Oral Side Effects of Cancer Treatment

Cancer treatments come with the possibility of a plethora of side effects, some of which are deemed more serious than others. 

While many patients are informed on countless occasions of what to be on the lookout for both during and after treatment, in certain situations, some side effects might not get as much attention as they should. 

“I think if somebody is in a setting where they're fortunate enough to have a dental team at their (treatment center), and that dental team has done a really good job of cross collaboration, then I think it's almost an immediate,” Dr. Samuel Zwetchkenbaum, dental director in the oral health program at the Rhode Island Department of Health, said in an interview with CURE®. 

“In my previous life, (when) I was at University of Michigan, we had a dental team and we attended tumor boards. We really tried to have a presence, but it's a little bit harder, especially in a community like Rhode Island, where we don't have the same presence. Then it requires these one on one relationships.”

In this week’s episode of the “CURE Talks Cancer” podcast, Zwetchkenbaum discussed some of the more common oral side effects patients may experience,  provided insight into how patients can go about preventing them from occurring, and more.