ABSTRACT
A premalignant/precancerous phase in the development of oral cancer is predicated by the classic model of experimental carcinogenesis. In 1946–1976 Jolan Banoczy done a study on 670 leukoplakia patient in the Department of Maxillo-Facial Surgery and Dentistry and Department of Conservative Dentistry, Semmelweis Medical University Budapest and showed that during a 30-year-period cancer development was found in 40 cases, that is, 6%. In 1963–64 J.J. Pindborg et al. done a study on 10,000 patients to record the prevalence of oral leukoplakia and their correlation with the use of tobacco and betel nut and stated that in Lucknow 3.28% were found to have oral leukoplakia and 99.4% of the leukoplakia were found in persons who practiced some form of smoking, chewing or both only 0.6% among those who did not. In 1984 Prakash C. Gupta conducted a house-to-house survey in Ernakulam district to study of the association between alcohol habits and oral leukoplakia.
