Oral cancer is one of the highly malignant tumors with poor prognosis. The pathogenic mechanisms of oral cancer have remained to be fully elucidated and this brings significant challenges to the treatment. RNA modification is a common intracellular chemical modification that has been related to various pathological processes, such as blood diseases, immune system diseases and cancer. As the most common and abundant RNA modification in eukaryotic mRNA, N6‑methyladenosine (m6A) modification has a crucial role in several cancers, including oral cancer. m6A modification directly affects gene expression levels and regulates various physiological and pathological processes. It has been demonstrated that m6A modification may affect the proliferation, migration and invasion of oral cancer cells by regulating the level of m6A modification. In the present review, the effects of m6A modification on the proliferation and death of oral cancer cells, as well as the occurrence and development of oral cancer, were analyzed in order to provide a new target for treatment. Furthermore, the roles of m6A modification in chemotherapy resistance and potential immunotherapy were analyzed and new treatment ideas were provided.
Keywords: RNA modified; m6A autophagy; metastasis; oral cancer; proliferation.