Khammam is the district of tribals in the Andhra Pradesh (India). Recently, we have conducted a study on oral cavity cancer in this tribal area and found that the incidence of oral cancer was 13.04%, male to female ratio was 1.03 : 1 and the incidence of oral cancer in youths (between 21 and 30 years) was 4.85%, which was too much compared with the global previous studies.

So, we decided to find the cause for the high incidences of oral cavity cancer among the youths, by conducting survey and by direct interviewing the youths at their villages and at their towns separately for the comparison between both locality youths. Also we undertook clinical examination of their oral cavity to find the presence of any pathological lesions. We prepared the proformas well in advance containing various parameters which cause oral cavity cancer and conducted mass interview of 3,000 youths both at rural and urban places separately. Master chart of both places was prepared and compared the differences between these two localities, to find the cause for increase in incidences oral cavity cancer. In rural area, out of 3,000 youths, 2,907 (96.9%) (including 1,605 male and 1,302 females) had various combination of habits whereas, in urban area, among 3,000 male youths, only 953 (31.76%) had various combination of habits. Illiteracy status in rural area was 77.56% and in the urban area, it is 13.23%. Among the youths having habits, various types of chewing habits in rural area were seen in 2,722 (93.69%) youths. In urban area, it was seen in 934 (98%). Among all 3,000 youths of each locality, oral cavity hygiene was unhygienic in 2,387 (79.56%) youths of the rural area whereas, in the urban area it is seen in 1109 (36.96%). Premalignant changes were seen 21 rural youths, but not in urban residents.

Education has vital role in rural area to control the chewing habits, for which media role and legislative act to ban the tobacco chewing should be mandatory to reduce the incidence of oral cavity cancer among the youths of tribal villages.