National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research Precision Health

The NIH Funding to Incidence Ratio for Oral Cancer is the lowest among the studied cancer types ($785 for oral cancer as opposed to $2,902 for Breast Cancer). But the incidence of HPV+ Oral Cancer has been projected to increase until 2060. Immunotherapy has shown great promise. But the OC patient response to checkpoint inhibition is low. Future research programs to characterize immunosuppression in oral cancer and to... more »

By sponsoring dental continuing-education regional symposiums that disseminate scientifically-based and validated treatment strategies for different rare disease populations, the NIDCR could play a leading role in improving the clinical care of rare disease patients.

Orofacial neuropathic pain, such as trigeminal neuralgia, is a debilitating neurological disorder and represents a challenge to dentists and pain specialists. Currently the mechanisms for the development of orofacial neuropathic pain are not fully understood and available treatment strategies are inadequate. Unraveling central neural circuitry underlying the pathogenesis of orofacial neuropathic pain will help us develop... more »

My grandson is an NF Plexiform type 1 Patient. He and other children with NF have anywhere from mild to severe facial deformities. I am submitting a request for NF to be put on the NIDCR "radar" for research, clinical trials, and treatment options.

In a dry mouth, can we find better ways to identify, prevent and control rampant yeast infection?

Efficacy of preventive interventions across the lifespan including oral health behaviors.

The periodontal disease , Oral Cancer, Dental Caries, Cleft Lip & Cleft Palate,Malocclusion, Amelogenesis Imperfecta and Dentinogenesis Imperfecta are genetic related diseases that manifest in the oral cavity and dentition and run in the families. Precision medicine in 2016 has taken an initiative to prepare treatment that are customised to patient needs. It helps in identifying target gene and helps to develop a more... more »

For autoimmune patients such as Sjogren’s patients, can we find biomarkers that have the ability to change and improve with the use of a therapeutic? Can we find better biomarkers that can improve diagnosis, help classify patients, and identify risk factors?

Can we find a replacement for the invasive lip or salivary gland biopsy that is just as good for diagnosis and monitoring of Sjogren’s patients?

Can the rapidly evolving field of immunology-oncology yield a better understanding of and potential therapies at much lower and less frequent dosing in autoimmune diseases such as Sjogren’s?

While we are still benefiting from projects like The Cancer Genome Atlas, more information about genetic/pathway alterations in each tumor is still required to better treat our patients. New technologies to dissect each tumor will provide vital information to more effectively treat each patient by aiding clinicians in selecting therapies targeting 1) major altered pathways, 2) identified stem cells and progenitor cell,... more »

There are abundant examples in the literature illuminating the relative discordance to be found when assessing diagnostic agreement (and, lack thereof) between dental providers. This data should not be left as an unaddressed observation only.
Shared images: both radiographic and clinical may be used globally to better achieve concordance and calibration with this, perhaps, leading to the more rapid inclusion of less... more »

Promote studies on the pathogenesis of dental caries, periodontal diseases and oral cancer to advance precision health and establish foundational knowledge for risk-based prevention and therapies.

Telehealth and / or collaborative practice model of assessment and prevention that includes dentists and hygienists and crosses disciplines.

Intra-tumor genetic heterogeneity, the set of differences in mutations among a tumor’s cancer cells, is a major obstacle to successful therapy. if a target of therapy is not in all subclones, or an immune response is activated only against subclonal neoantigens, only the subclones that contain the target or those neoantigens will respond directly. If mutations in a subclone make it resistant to therapy, that resistant... more »