It seems therefore that serum VEGF level may be a reliable biomarker and may be a potential target for development of chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic strategies for patients with tobacco-related oral carcinoma.
Immunodetection of the proteins VEGF, caspase-3, and p53 is not influenced by smoking or alcohol consumption, suggesting that other molecular mechanisms are associated with the biological aggressiveness of oral carcinoma in patients exposed to these risk factors.