**Executive Summary**
The Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) and the BRIC-National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG), in collaboration with the Sri Devraj Urs Academy of Higher Education and Research (SDUAHER), have conducted a study on oral cancer in Indian women, focusing on the genetic drivers behind the disease. The study aims to understand the unique aspects of oral cancer in women, how it manifests and progresses, and how to improve treatment. The research, published in the *Clinical and Translational Medicine Journal*, identifies key genes and mutation patterns.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Study Overview:**
* Female-centric study on oral cancer in India, focusing on the tobacco-chewing habits prevalent among women in certain regions.
* Aims to understand unique aspects of cancer in women, including disease manifestation, progression, and improved treatment strategies.
* **Findings:**
* Identified ten key genes with significant mutations in the female oral cancer cohort from Kolar, Karnataka.
* CASP8 identified as a unique driver mutation in women, contrasting with previous studies primarily focused on men.
* Co-occurring TP53 and CASP8 mutations suggest a markedly aggressive phenotype.
* AI analysis revealed two distinct groups of female patients with varying immune responses in their tumors.
* **Implications:**
* Highlights the urgent need to include more women in biomedical research.
* Provides a roadmap for personalized medicine in tackling oral cancer.
* Findings require confirmation in a larger patient cohort.
**Impact Analysis**
**Researchers (JNCASR, NIBMG, SDUAHER)**
* **Impact:** The study provides a foundation for further research into the molecular mechanisms of oral cancer driven by the identified mutations.
* **Action Required:** Focus on delineating the molecular mechanisms of oncogenesis driven by the new driver mutation and conduct further investigation based on the limited cohort.
**Clinicians and Healthcare Providers**
* **Impact:** This study provides insights into potential personalized treatment strategies based on a patient's tumor profile.
* **Action Required:** Consider the findings of the study when developing treatment plans for female patients with oral cancer.
**Female Patients with Oral Cancer**
* **Impact:** The research offers hope for more effective and personalized treatment options.
* **Action Required:** Engage in conversations with their healthcare providers about the potential implications of these findings.
**Biomedical Research Community**
* **Impact:** Highlights the need to include more women in cancer research and opens avenues for personalized medicine in oral cancer.
* **Action Required:** Re-evaluate research protocols to ensure adequate representation of female patients and conduct additional research to confirm the findings in larger cohorts.
Key Entities Referenced
Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR): Research institute in Bengaluru involved in the study of oral cancer in Indian women.
BRIC-National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG): Biomedical research institute in Kalyani, a collaborator in the study.
Sri Devraj Urs Academy of Higher Education and Research (SDUAHER): Medical college in Kolar; clinicians from this institution collaborated on the oral cancer study.
Kolar: District in Karnataka where the regional tobacco-chewing habit (Kaddipudi) is common among women, and where female oral cancer cohort was studied.
Clinical and Translational Medicine Journal: Journal where the study on oral cancer in Indian women was published.
Ministry of Science & Technology
Genetic clues to tackle oral cancer among Indian
women revealed
प्रव तथ: 29 NOV 2025 8:19PM by PIB Delhi
Indian scientists have discovered oral cancer-causing driver gene mutations in women patients of southern
India. India carries one of the world’s heaviest burdens of oral cancer with alarmingly high rates witnessed
among women in certain regions, especially in southern and northeast India, due to the widespread habit
of chewing tobacco-infused betel quid, gutka, and related products. While the disease is widely studied in
men, oral cancer in women has often remained under the radar.
A team of researchers from the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR),
Bengaluru and the BRIC-National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG), Kalyani, in collaboration
with clinicians from Sri Devraj Urs Academy of Higher Education and Research (SDUAHER), Kolar, has
conducted a female-centric study on oral cancer in India with a unique tobacco chewing habit.
This study led by Prof. Tapas K Kundu, JNCASR, Bengaluru aimed to understand what makes cancers in
women unique, how the disease manifests and progresses in female patients and how we can treat them
better.
Fig - Sequencing of Patients` Gene: Whole-exome sequencing (WES) and copy-number array profiling
were performed on paired tumour and blood samples from female OSCC-GB patients with a unique
regional tobacco-chewing habit (Kaddipudi), commonly observed among women in the Kolar district ofKarnataka. Analysis of this women-centric cohort has revealed a unique driver mutation implicated in
oral tumorigenesis.
This investigation published in the Clinical and Translational Medicine Journal was specifically designed
to uncover the biological underpinnings of the disproportionately aggressive, highly recurrent, and life-
threatening forms of oral cancer that affect Indian women.
Using cutting-edge whole-exome sequencing, the researchers identified ten key genes with significant
mutations in the female oral cancer cohort from Kolar, Karnataka (SDUAHER).
Although two of the major genes, CASP8 and TP53, were found to be highly mutated in these patients,
uniquely, CASP8 seems to be the driver mutation (cancer-causing), which is quite different compared to
previously studied mutations in oral cancer patients (largely men).
Despite the limited cohort size (N=38), the findings suggest that co-occurring TP53 and CASP8 mutations
confer a markedly aggressive and lethal phenotype in oral cancer. These observations warrant further
investigation, and the team is now focused on delineating the molecular mechanisms of oncogenesis
driven by this novel driver mutation within the background of TP53 alterations for the next phase of the
research. The team also used artificial intelligence (deep learning) to digitally analyze tumor tissues. This
revealed two distinct groups of female patients, each with a different immune response in their tumors.
This insight is crucial because it suggests that some patients might respond better to certain treatments
based on their tumor profile.
This groundbreaking study sets a new benchmark in cancer research. It not only highlights the urgent need
to include more women patients in biomedical research but also provides a roadmap for personalized
medicine in tackling oral cancer—a disease that has claimed many lives in India. However, these findings
need to be further confirmed in a larger number of patients.
Publication link- doi: 10.1002/ctm2.70386
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