Abstract
Previous studies conducted by our group confirmed that the electrochemical telomerase assay （ECTA） is sufficiently sensitive to detect oral cancer from the cells obtained by exfoliation from the whole oral cavity. In this study to develop a self-screening system for oral cancer using this method, we examined the optimal method for self-collection of exfoliated cells from the whole oral cavity.
First, an interdental brush, a conventional silicone brush for the cervix, a newly developed silicone brush for the oral cavity, a sponge brush used in our previous studies, and a gargle were tested for exfoliation from the oral cavity in ten healthy volunteers. Cells exfoliated from the oral cavity were collected by a single examiner, to prevent inter-examiner variation.
Then, exfoliated cells were collected from the same ten healthy volunteers by the same manner and stained using papanicolaou.
Finally, to mimic self-examination for oral cancer, another ten healthy volunteers were instructed on how to perform a specially-made protocol for collecting exfoliated cells from their oral cavity with a sponge brush, which had been evaluated in the initial study as the most efficient method. All subjects collected a sufficient number of cells comparable to conventional methods of exfoliative cytology.
In conclusion, the self-screening system for detecting oral cancer using ECTA with the cell collection protocol described herein could be promising.
