Background: A very high incidence of oral cancer has been reported from Kerala, South India, compared to other parts of the world. Altered trace element status has been reported in both the potentially malignant and malignant stages. Hence; under the light of above mentioned data, the present study was undertaken for estimating salivary copper levels in patients with oral pre-cancerous and cancerous lesions. Materials & methods: A total of 40 subjects were included in the present study. All the patients were broadly divided into two study groups as follows: Group 1: 20 patients with precancerous lesions, and Group 2: 20 patients with cancerous conditions. Unstimulated salivary samples were obtained from all the patients in sterilized vials. All the samples were sent to laboratory where an auto-analyser was used for assessing the salivary copper levels. Results: Mean copper levels of the subjects of group 1 and group 2 were 76.2 ppb and 95.8 ppb respectively. Significant results were obtained while comparing the mean salivary copper levels among subjects of group 1 and group 2. Conclusion: Alteration in salivary copper levels does occur in patients with premalignant and malignant disorders. However; further studies are recommended. Key words: Copper, Malignant, Zinc