Journal article
Oral microbiome alterations after cancer treatment: a scoping review and analysis
Medical oncology (Northwood, London, England), Vol.42(10), 432
08/19/2025
DOI: 10.1007/s12032-025-02998-6
PMCID: PMC12364993
PMID: 40828300
Abstract
Cancer therapies impact the oral cavity. Oral microbial changes occur following cancer therapy, but the nature, duration, and implications of these shifts are not well understood. Exposure to radiation, chemotherapy or cellular therapies has been associated with oral microbiome shifts toward dysbiosis and increased frequency of pathogenic species in the microbiome. Despite these findings, much remains unknown about cancer-therapy-related changes in the oral microbiome following specific therapies, and what the associated long-term oral health implications may be for cancer survivorship. We therefore conducted a scoping review of oral microbiome studies in patients undergoing cancer therapy to broadly synthesize the literature on the oral microbiome in the context of cancer therapy, categorize findings, and identify research gaps to inform future projects. This scoping review of the literature describes substantial changes in the oral microbiome during cancer treatment, specifically chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and stem cell transplantation. Across 62 studies, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and stem cell transplantation were associated with substantial changes in oral microbial communities. Among studies that assessed alpha diversity, the richness of species that comprised the oral microbiome often increased, encompassing more microbial taxa, while the evenness of species decreased, suggesting that community change was dominated by a few species. Frequently observed changes included decreases in commensal taxa such as
Streptococcus
and
Prevotella
and increases in opportunistic organisms such as
Candida albicans
and
Staphylococcus aureus
. While mucositis was often studied, consistent microbial predictors of this outcome were not identified The present study lays the groundwork for future research on the unique oral microenvironment and health needs in cancer survivors. The alterations in microbiome composition associated with specific cancer treatment categories add to our limited understanding of the key role of cancer therapy modalities on the oral microbiome.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Oral microbiome alterations after cancer treatment: a scoping review and analysis
- Creators
- Francis A. Boksa - National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial ResearchLeah I. Leinbach - National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial ResearchDrashty P. Mody - National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial ResearchSukirth M. Ganesan - National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial ResearchJacqueline W. Mays - National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Medical oncology (Northwood, London, England), Vol.42(10), 432
- DOI
- 10.1007/s12032-025-02998-6
- PMID
- 40828300
- PMCID
- PMC12364993
- NLM abbreviation
- Med Oncol
- ISSN
- 1357-0560
- eISSN
- 1559-131X
- Publisher
- Springer US
- Grant note
- National Institutes of Health
Alicia A. Livinski of the National Institutes of Health Library provided critical research librarian support for the study design and data search strategy and for the final manuscript format.
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 08/19/2025
- Academic Unit
- Periodontics
- Record Identifier
- 9984948007902771
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