## 3 Results
### Histology  
The OSCC lesions were well-differentiated (G1) in 4 patients, moderately differentiated (G2) in 5 patients, and poorly differentiated (G3) in 1 patient. According to the pathological TNM (pTNM), the pathological T categories included 2 Tis (20%), 3 T1 N0 M0 (30%), 3 T2 N0 M0 (30%), and 1 T2 N1 M0 (10%). Histological tumor sizes ranged from 0.5 to 25 mm and DOI ranged from 0.4 to 6 mm (mean 2.46 mm, SD 1.91 mm). TT ranged from 3 to 20 mm (mean 9.15 mm, SD 5.89 mm). The average TT of exophytic lesions was 5.28 \(\pm\) 2.47 mm, while the TT of endophytic lesions was 2.55 \(\pm\) 1.22 mm. The mean DOI for exophytic lesions was 2.07 \(\pm\) 1.29 mm, while for endophytic lesions the value  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c c c c c c} \hline \hline  & \multicolumn{2}{c}{**Patient Characteristics**} & \multicolumn{4}{c}{**Clinical Features of the Lesion**} & \multicolumn{4}{c}{**UHFUS Examination**} \\ \hline
**Patient** & **Age** & **Gender** & \begin{tabular}{c} **Smoking Habit** \\ **(Cigarettes/Day)** \\ \end{tabular} & **Site of Lesion** & \begin{tabular}{c} **Presence of the** \\ **Lesion (Months)** \\ \end{tabular} & \
\begin{tabular}{c} **Growth** \\ **Pattern** \\ \end{tabular} & **VAS** &
\begin{tabular}{c} **Mean Grey** \\ **Value** \\ **Distribution** \\ \end{tabular} & **Main** & **Max** \\ \hline
1 & 83 & F & YES (10 cig/day) & Tongue & 8 & Endophytic & 8 & 71.97 & 18.03 & 26.00 & 183.00 \\
2 & 75 & F & YES (15 cig/day) & Gingvia & 4 & Endophytic & 4 & 61.08 & 40.77 & 9.00 & 235.00 \\
3 & 68 & M & YES (20 cig/day) & Tongue & 6 & Endophytic & 1 & 60.32 & 15.08 & 20.00 & 126.00 \\
4 & 58 & F & NO & Gingvia & 3 & Endophytic & 2 & 85.48 & 20.13 & 44.00 & 176.00 \\
5 & 75 & F & NO & Buccal mucosa & 5 & Exophytic & 9 & 53.69 & 27.03 & 10.00 & 222.00 \\
6 & 70 & M & NO & Tongue & 6 & Exophytic & 6 & 43.97 & 13.32 & 13.00 & 121.00 \\
7 & 59 & M & YES (25 cig/day) & Tongue & 3 & Exophytic & 9 & 35.27 & 18.36 & 5.00 & 155.00 \\
8 & 60 & F & YES (20 cig/day) & Tongue & 6 & Exophytic & 8 & 83.35 & 37.78 & 22.00 & 192.00 \\
9 & 83 & M & Mouth floor & 12 & Exophytic & 6 & 63.49 & 20.87 & 25.00 & 220.00 \\
10 & 56 & F & YES (20 cig/day) & Tongue & 12 & Exophytic & 0 & 90.76 & 33.99 & 20.00 & 227.00 \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table}
Table 1: Sample characteristics. Acronyms: UHFUS = ultra-high frequency ultrasound; VAS = visual analogue scale.  
Figure 1: OSCC (oral squamous cell carcinoma) of the tongue margin in a 59-year-old male: **(A)** clinical aspect of the lesion, which appears to be ulcerated; **(B)** B-mode UHFUS (ultra-high frequency ultrasound) examination, showing the presence of an endophytic lesion, with unclear lateral margins and a mixed echogenic pattern; **(C)** color Doppler image, showing mild (score 1) perilesional vascularization.  
Figure 2: OSCC of the buccal mucosa in a 58-year-old female: **(A)** clinical aspect of the lesion; **(B)** B-mode UHFUS (ultra-high frequency ultrasound) examination, showing a hypoechoic exophytic lesion with irregular margins; the underlying submuc appears to be thinned; **(C)** color Doppler image, showing moderate (score 2) intralesional vascularization.  
was 2.05 \(\pm\) 1.73 mm. In 8 cases, the tumor was found to infiltrate the lamina propria. No evidence of distant metastases was found in any of the included patients.