On the other hand, we found an enrichment of DNA repair genes, namely ATR, BRCA1, BRCA2, RAD50, and MUTYH, in nonrecurrent tumors suggesting that the mutations in the DNA repair pathway may at least partially explain the different response to the standard treatment.<h4>Conclusions</h4>Our pilot study identified pathways of carcinogenesis in oral cancer and specific gene sets that indicate treatment responses and prognoses in this group of patients. Here, BRCA1 is linked to lip and oral cavity carcinoma.