Oral Cancer
Posted in Conditions & TreatmentsIt’s always best to stick to a regular self examination to detect oral cancer early on.
Tobacco and/or alcohol use, poor oral hygiene, poor nutrition, irritation and chronic infections are all causes of oral cancer.
Follow these steps when examining your mouth:
- remove any dentures
- look and feel inside the lips and the front of gums
- tilt head back to inspect and feel the roof of your mouth
- pull the cheek out to see its inside surface as well as the back of the gums
- pull out your tongue and look at all of its surfaces
- feel for lumps or enlarged lymph nodes (glands) in both sides of the neck including under the lower jaw
Look for the following when self examining your mouth:
- white patches of the oral tissues — leukoplakia
- red patches — erythroplakia
- red and white patches — erythroleukoplakia
- a sore that fails to heal and bleeds easily
- an abnormal lump or thickening of the tissues of the mouth
- chronic sore throat or hoarseness
- difficulty in chewing or swallowing
- a mass or lump in the neck
If you have any of these symptoms, make an appointment with your oral & maxillofacial surgeon. They may suggest a biopsy to remove a piece of the suspicious tissue. If so, the tissue is sent to pathology laboratory for a microscopic examination to accurately diagnose the problem.