Resorption of impacted teeth as a marker of squamous cell carcinoma infiltrating the mandible

The?invasion?of?the?mandible?by?oral?squamous?cell?carcinoma?has?been?firmly?demonstrated?by?anatomical?and?histological?studies.Although?squamous?cell?carcinomas?may?induce?resorption?of?the?roots?of?standing?teeth,?there?have?been?no?reports?of?them?also?causing?resorption?of?the?crowns?of?teeth. A?73-year-old?patient?presented?with?an?invading?buccal?squamous?cell?carcinoma. Radiological?investigations?showed?tumour?invasion?of?the?dentate?region?of?the?left?mandible?and?resorption?of?the?crowns?of?right?and?left?mandibular?impacted?third?molars. The?patient?underwent?a?left?segmental?mandibulectomy?and?histopathological?examination?of?the?resected?specimen?revealed?resorption?of?the?enamel?and?dentine?of?an?unerupted?impacted?third?molar?closely?associated?with?the?infiltrating?tumour. Thus?infiltrating?carcinomas?may?rarely?cause?resorption?of?the?crowns?as?well?as?the?roots?of?unerupted?teeth?and?can?be?a?valuable?marker?of?the?extent?of?spread?of?a?tumour?for?the?planning?of?complete?surgical?resection. These?dental?changes?must?be?distinguished?radiologically?from?idiopathic?changes?in?unerupted?teeth?in?the?absence?of?malignancy.