A Case of Severe Early Childhood Caries Occurring in a Childhood Cancer Patient

Background/Objectives: Childhood cancer is the leading cause of death among children, although medical advances are improving the prognosis. During cancer treatment, nausea or vomiting may occur and eating habits may become irregular; therefore, it is important to prevent the development of oral dis...

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Main Authors: Tatsuya Akitomo, Noriko Niizato, Shunya Ikeda, Yuya Ito, Eimi Tabata, Chieko Mitsuhata, Ryota Nomura
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-02-01
Series:Children
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/12/3/261
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author Tatsuya Akitomo
Noriko Niizato
Shunya Ikeda
Yuya Ito
Eimi Tabata
Chieko Mitsuhata
Ryota Nomura
author_facet Tatsuya Akitomo
Noriko Niizato
Shunya Ikeda
Yuya Ito
Eimi Tabata
Chieko Mitsuhata
Ryota Nomura
author_sort Tatsuya Akitomo
collection DOAJ
description Background/Objectives: Childhood cancer is the leading cause of death among children, although medical advances are improving the prognosis. During cancer treatment, nausea or vomiting may occur and eating habits may become irregular; therefore, it is important to prevent the development of oral diseases. We encountered a childhood cancer patient with rapidly progressive multiple dental caries, and this report describes the progress. Methods: A boy aged 2 years 9 months was referred for perioperative oral management. No caries were detected in the oral cavity at the initial visit. Results: As the patient had difficulty eating because of nausea and vomiting during cancer treatment, he began to consume probiotic drinks frequently. At 8-month follow-up, dental caries localized to the primary molars was detected. However, caries had occurred in all erupted teeth by 9 months later, confirming the diagnosis of severe early childhood caries. Dental treatment and long-term oral management contributed to good oral health except for dental abnormalities caused by chemotherapy. Conclusions: Childhood cancer patients, particularly at an early age, are at risk of rapid deterioration of oral disease even over a short time period. It is important to cooperate with medical or dental professionals from other hospitals to provide dietary and oral health instruction and continue long-term oral management to improve patients’ quality of life.
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spelling doaj-art-5b168e890e9f45299d86fa1dc6cd5adf2025-08-20T02:42:40ZengMDPI AGChildren2227-90672025-02-0112326110.3390/children12030261A Case of Severe Early Childhood Caries Occurring in a Childhood Cancer PatientTatsuya Akitomo0Noriko Niizato1Shunya Ikeda2Yuya Ito3Eimi Tabata4Chieko Mitsuhata5Ryota Nomura6Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima 734-8553, JapanAcacia Kids’ Dental Clinic, Hiroshima 731-0102, JapanDepartment of Pediatric Dentistry, Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima 734-8553, JapanDepartment of Pediatric Dentistry, Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima 734-8553, JapanDepartment of Pediatric Dentistry, Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima 734-8553, JapanDepartment of Pediatric Dentistry, Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima 734-8553, JapanDepartment of Pediatric Dentistry, Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima 734-8553, JapanBackground/Objectives: Childhood cancer is the leading cause of death among children, although medical advances are improving the prognosis. During cancer treatment, nausea or vomiting may occur and eating habits may become irregular; therefore, it is important to prevent the development of oral diseases. We encountered a childhood cancer patient with rapidly progressive multiple dental caries, and this report describes the progress. Methods: A boy aged 2 years 9 months was referred for perioperative oral management. No caries were detected in the oral cavity at the initial visit. Results: As the patient had difficulty eating because of nausea and vomiting during cancer treatment, he began to consume probiotic drinks frequently. At 8-month follow-up, dental caries localized to the primary molars was detected. However, caries had occurred in all erupted teeth by 9 months later, confirming the diagnosis of severe early childhood caries. Dental treatment and long-term oral management contributed to good oral health except for dental abnormalities caused by chemotherapy. Conclusions: Childhood cancer patients, particularly at an early age, are at risk of rapid deterioration of oral disease even over a short time period. It is important to cooperate with medical or dental professionals from other hospitals to provide dietary and oral health instruction and continue long-term oral management to improve patients’ quality of life.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/12/3/261severe early childhood carieschildhood cancerperioperative oral managementdental anomalycase report
spellingShingle Tatsuya Akitomo
Noriko Niizato
Shunya Ikeda
Yuya Ito
Eimi Tabata
Chieko Mitsuhata
Ryota Nomura
A Case of Severe Early Childhood Caries Occurring in a Childhood Cancer Patient
Children
severe early childhood caries
childhood cancer
perioperative oral management
dental anomaly
case report
title A Case of Severe Early Childhood Caries Occurring in a Childhood Cancer Patient
title_full A Case of Severe Early Childhood Caries Occurring in a Childhood Cancer Patient
title_fullStr A Case of Severe Early Childhood Caries Occurring in a Childhood Cancer Patient
title_full_unstemmed A Case of Severe Early Childhood Caries Occurring in a Childhood Cancer Patient
title_short A Case of Severe Early Childhood Caries Occurring in a Childhood Cancer Patient
title_sort case of severe early childhood caries occurring in a childhood cancer patient
topic severe early childhood caries
childhood cancer
perioperative oral management
dental anomaly
case report
url https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/12/3/261
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