Comparative Assessment of Lipid Peroxidase in Oral Cancer and Oral Potentially Malignant Disorders

Introduction Oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD) are abnormally altered tissues that could potentially develop into oral cancer. From the literature, it is understandable that not all OPMDs develop into oral cancer. Hence, it is essential to identify the high-risk lesions that are more likely to develop into oral cancer. Lipid peroxidase (LPO) is a byproduct of phospholipid metabolism, and its levels are an oxidative stress marker that can probably help us predict the onset of cancer in OPMDS. This study aimed to assess the levels of LPO in OPMD, oral cancer, and normal patients. Materials and methods The sample size estimated was 15 per group. There were four groups in total. The estimation was done with the Abbkine LPO enzyme-linked immunosorption assay (ELISA) kit (Atlanta, Georgia, USA). An enzyme-substrate reaction was carried out, and the degree of the color change was measured using a microplate reader. The values were tabulated, and statistics were carried out using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Both descriptive and inferential statistics were carried out. Results LPO levels (nmol/L) in each of the four groups were as follows: Group 1 (oral cancer): 171.86±78.86, Group 2 (controls): 71.66±28.36, Group 3: (oral leukoplakia): 127.50±103.53, and Group 4 (oral submucous fibrosis and oral lichen planus): 100.39±41.06. The results, when compared, were statistically significant (P< 0.05). Discussion From the above results, it is understandable that oral cancer patients experience increased oxidative stress compared to the OPMD group. The current study concluded that the obtained results showed differences in LPO levels, suggesting LPO could be used as a marker and screening tool to assess the rate and severity of cellular damage in patients with oral potentially malignant disorders.