Dental treatment planning and management in the patient who has cancer.

The oral cavity has the potential to be a major source of short-term and long-term complications from cancer therapy. Appropriate evaluation and elimination of potential sources of oral infection before cancer therapy is vital because oral bacteria are a known source of bacteremia and septicemia during cancer therapy. Cancer diagnosis with previous and planned treatment, past medical history, past dental history, current medications, drug allergies, social history, family history, laboratory values, extraoral findings, intraoral findings, and radiographic findings must all be evaluated in planning dental treatment for these complex cases.