Metastatic tumors to the jaw bones: Retrospective analysis from an Indian tertiary referral center

Aim: Being a tertiary referral center, we encounter the highest number of oral cancer patients in India, and there is direct involvement of the jaw bone in approximately 40% of these cases. There are no large case series from the Indian subcontinent on metastatic tumors to the jaw bones. With this retrospective analysis, we intend to estimate the incidence of this rare manifestation in the jaw bones in our patients and compare it with the available literature.
Materials and Methods: All patients with biopsy proven metastatic disease involving jaw bones having complete clinical data were included.
Results: Nineteen out of 10,411 oral cancer patients who reported between the years 2000 and 2005 were included. Breast and thyroid malignancies (5/19 each) were commonest in the females to metastasize to the mandible, whereas in the males, there was no predominant site that resulted in jaw bone metastasis, although mandible was commonly affected. Neuroblastoma of adrenal gland metastasized to maxilla in the age group ranging from 4 months to 16 years. Maxilla was the commonest jaw bone affected in this age group. In five cases, jaw bone was found to be the first site of metastasis.
Conclusions: There is variation in the primary site that causes metastasis to the jaw bones depending on age, sex and geographic distribution. Jaw bone metastases are rare and can be the first site of metastasis. We get approximately four cases in a year with metastatic disease manifesting in the jaw bones. Metastasis to jaw bone is associated with poor prognosis.