Current Concepts in Dentistry Day 4

Course description

Hot Topics in Oral Pathology

Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026
Presented by Sara C. Gordon, DDS, MS, FRCD, FDS-RCS, DABOMP

What brave new worlds are looming in oral pathology diagnosis and treatment? In this course, we will look at key developments pertinent to diseases of interest in dental practice, including mucosal and salivary gland conditions with an emphasis on malignancies. Some are still promising proposals that must withstand rigorous testing. Others offer true advances in understanding disease pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment. We will also take a clinically focused look at current evidence-based links between oral cavity health and broader systemic health.

Learning objectives

By end of the course, you will be able to:

• Identify key advances in understanding the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management of oral mucosa and salivary gland diseases, especially malignancies
• Identify technologies and methods that can have an evidence-based impact on oral pathology diagnosis and treatment in dental practice
• Discuss technologies and methods that may be promising for the future but have not yet been proven effective for application to oral healthcare
• Discuss evidence-based links between oral cavity health and broader systemic health

About the presenter

Sara C. Gordon, DDS, MS, FRCD, FDS-RCS, DABOMP is a specialist in oral pathology (in the USA and Canada) and oral medicine (in Canada). Before specializing, she was a full-time general dentist in Nova Scotia for nearly a decade. She is professor emerita at the University of Washington School of Dentistry in Seattle, WA, and a former associate dean for academic affairs.

For over 40 years, Dr. Gordon has taught oral pathology, oral diagnosis, and oral medicine; practiced in oral medicine clinics and participated in oral pathology biopsy services at universities in the US and Canada (University of Illinois Chicago, University of Detroit Mercy, University of Western Ontario, and Dalhousie University). She has authored 100+ peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, and abstracts on oral health.

She is a commissioner of the US Joint Commission on National Dental Examinations and a member of the dental education council for the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Scotland, of which she is a fellow. She is also a fellow of the Royal College of Dentists of Canada and a diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology.

Dr. Gordon has no relevant financial relationships with commercial interests to disclose.