Outcome and follow-up
Patient follow-up is favorable, at 18 months, the patient showed no
recurrence and new erosive lesions appeared on the left lateral border
of the tongue, but the biopsy did not show epithelial dysplasia (Figure
3A and 3B). At 6 years, a new biopsy concluded that there was no
malignancy. The last follow-up appointment in February 2021 indicates
that the clinical examination of the mucosa and lymph nodes is
completely satisfactory.
The reported case shows that pregnant women may have tongue SCC, even if
rarely, can be associated with a potentially malignant lesion such as
OLP. The hypothesis of disruption of the patient’s immune system, linked
to her pregnancy or a possible activation of oncogenic viruses, could
explain the transformation of OLP into SCC, but more investigation for
proving association with hormonal modification during pregnancy is
needed. It is important to focus on early detection and early
intervention for pregnant women with a regular oral examination,
especially of the tongue, to detect early signs of cancer. All areas of
suspected oral inflammatory mucosa or potentially malignant lesions
OLP-like should be biopsied and monitored with regularity to exclude
malignancy. The practitioner must inform the patient of the potential
risk of transformation of the OLP.