The COCPAR – Centre for Oral Cancer Prevention, Awareness, and Research Centre of Excellence has been established on our campus with the aim of uniting leading researchers from across India and promoting global collaboration to tackle national challenges through science and technology. The Centre is equipped with state-of-the-art technology for advanced research projects focused on oral cancer detection and follows best practices in oral cancer screening and tobacco cessation counseling, aiming to provide comprehensive care and prevention. COCPAR also receives funding both internal funding from BIHER and external funding from DST/DPT.

The Team COCPAR conducts Oral Cancer Prevention and Awareness Programs to emphasize the importance of early detection and treatment. The team also offers support to individuals with high-risk habits, with or without oral potentially malignant disorders, providing referrals, counseling, and follow-up care for patients diagnosed with oral cancer.

The Centre operates under the leadership of Director Prof. (Dr.) K.M.K. Masthan, M.D.S., and Joint-Director Prof. (Dr.) N. Aravindha Babu, M.D.S., FICD (USA), with Dr. Vidya Rani, M.D.S., serving as Principal Investigator. Dr. Vidya Rani has completed a Research Fellowship under the guidance of Dr. (Prof.) Michael McCullough at the Department of Oral Medicine and Oral Pathology, Melbourne Dental School, University of Melbourne, Australia, from April 2009 to October 2009.

Dr. K.M.K.Masthan, with 23 years of teaching experience, is the Editor-in-Chief of the Indian Journal of Multidisciplinary Dentistry (IJMD), published under Bharath University. The team has published research in high-impact, top-tier journals.

Dr. N. Aravindha Babu, Head of the Department with 19 years of teaching experience, serves as Head of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology and Oral Microbiology, the Associate Editor of the International Journal of Multidisciplinary Dentistry and Co-Editor of the Indian Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology (IAOMP). and also holds the position of Co-Convenor of the Clinical Society Meeting at Sree Balaji Dental College and Hospital.

Together, the team is committed in advancing research and contributing to the global fight against oral cancer, hosted national conferences, workshops, and consultancy programs.

The COCPAR plays a pivotal role in raising awareness about oral cancer, offering tobacco cessation counseling, and providing services for screening, diagnosis, and preventive treatment. We aim to develop a sensitive, rapid, and cost-effective tool for diagnosing oral potentially malignant disorders and oral cancer, while also creating methods to evaluate the transformation potential of oral pre-malignancies and the prognosis of oral cancer. Additionally, the Centre will investigate the role of oncogenic viruses in oral cancer cases that occur without traditional risk factors and will work on identifying markers for targeted therapies in both malignant and potentially malignant disorders. A key focus will be the identification of sensitive markers that can help predict the likelihood of cancer development in individuals with or without risk habits, as well as those with a family history of the disease.

The Centre aspires to be a leading resource, both nationally and internationally, by providing the necessary infrastructure and support for advanced research. Our vision is to build a state-of-the-art facility equipped with cutting-edge technology, dedicated to the study of oral cancer and potentially malignant disorders.