Okuyama Kohei, Yanamoto Souichi
Department of Cancer Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1881 East Rd, Houston, TX 77054, USA.
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgical Oncology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Institute of Science Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8549, Japan.
Cancers (Basel). 2024 Dec 23;16(24):4276. doi: 10.3390/cancers16244276.
Saliva plays a multifaceted role in oral health and systemic well-being. It supports digestion, protects oral tissues, maintains a healthy oral microbiome, and facilitates wound healing. Additionally, saliva serves as a diagnostic tool that reflects systemic health and disease/therapeutic states. Furthermore, although saliva shows a protective effect against oral cancer development, once tumor formation occurs, it may be involved in tumor progression and metastasis via exosomes and microRNAs. This review discusses the essential role of saliva; its relationship with the development, progression, and metastasis of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC); liquid biopsy tools for early diagnosis and monitoring of HNSCC; and the potential of exosomes as therapeutic agents.
唾液在口腔健康和全身健康中发挥着多方面的作用。它有助于消化，保护口腔组织，维持健康的口腔微生物群，并促进伤口愈合。此外，唾液还可作为一种反映全身健康及疾病/治疗状态的诊断工具。此外，尽管唾液对口腔癌的发生具有保护作用，但一旦肿瘤形成，它可能通过外泌体和微小RNA参与肿瘤的进展和转移。本文综述讨论了唾液的重要作用；其与头颈部鳞状细胞癌（HNSCC）发生、进展和转移的关系；用于HNSCC早期诊断和监测的液体活检工具；以及外泌体作为治疗剂的潜力。
