Prevalence and influencing factors of oral frailty in cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis
TL;DR
It is suggested that oral frailty is relatively common among patients with cancer and is associated with several identifiable factors.
Abstract
Introduction This study systematically evaluated the prevalence of oral frailty and its associated influencing factors among patients with cancer through a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods A systematic search was conducted across nine electronic databases up to January 13, 2026, and 13 studies involving 3,524 participants were ultimately included. Results The pooled analysis demonstrated that the prevalence of oral frailty in patients with cancer was 52% (95% CI: 46%–59%), indicating a substantial disease burden in this population. Several factors were identified as associated with oral frailty, including denture use (OR = 15.09, 95% CI: 6.78–33.58), poor oral health (OR = 4.70, 95% CI: 2.13–10.39), physical frailty (OR = 3.63, 95% CI: 2.40–5.50), smoking (OR = 3.53, 95% CI: 2.34–5.31), malnutrition (OR = 3.40, 95% CI: 2.01-5.75), xerostomia (OR = 3.46, 95% CI: 2.11–5.68), and radiotherapy (OR = 2.62, 95% CI: 1.67–4.11). Sensitivity analysis confirmed the robustness of the results, and Egger's test indicated no significant publication bias (P > 0.05). Discussion These findings suggest that oral frailty is relatively common among patients with cancer and is associated with several identifiable factors. Systematic review registration https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/, identifier: CRD420261281120.