There is just no one who wants to spend time thinking about oral cancer. However, considering the thousands of cases that are coming up these days, it is high time that you educate yourself on its prevention methods and treatment options. Although the number of patients being diagnosed with the disease in multiplying rapidly, the good news is oral cancer is completely curable if it is detected at early stages.
Importance of oral cancer screening
Oral cancer screening is a procedure to look for oral cavities and oropharyngal cancer cells in an individual. The procedure never takes more than a few minutes and it can be done by your dental expert during a routine checkup. During the screening, the expert will run an assessment on both your overall health and dental health history. He may also ask you questions about your teeth and gums as well as general health to understand the level of risk you are under to develop cancer in the mouth.
The screening process will also include a thorough inspection of your entire mouth as well as the throat to detect development of any abnormalities.
Early signs and symptoms
According to oral health experts, there are multiple symptoms to detect cancer in the mouth at its early stages. Some of the common symptoms that show up include:
- Appearance of reddish or whitish patches in the tongue or the mouth
- An area inside the mouth will undergo swelling
- Sudden bleeding without any apparent cause or reason
- Appearance of sores either on the face, neck, or mouth and these sores will not heal completely
- The voice may turn hoarse
- Prominent lumps may appear in the mouth, jaw, and neck of the patient
Apart from the early signs and symptoms of oral cancer mentioned above, a patient may also undergo severe weight loss within a very short time.
People who are at high risk developing the disease
Consumption of tobacco and alcohol are considered to be the most obvious reasons behind the disease. Apart from smoking, tobacco can also be consumed by chewing. Any form of tobacco consumption improves your chance of developing the killer disease. According to cancer specialists, people suffering from cancer in the mouth are more likely to die than those suffering from cervical cancer or cancer in the skin. Moreover, the majority of these deaths are actually preventable if the disease is diagnosed at its initial stages and the treatment starts early.
What to do for early detection of oral cancer
Professional dentist is trained and skilled to see the parts of your mouth that you cannot see yourself. Suppose you live in Wimbledon so, it is a good idea to contact with a local dentist in Wimbledon for oral cancer screening. The expert attending you will try to detect any wound or cut in your mouth. These oral wounds or lesions may involve a whitish and a reddish patch or area of cells.
If the wounds are present, then you will be further diagnosed for growth of abnormal tissues inside the mouth, which normally lead to the life-threatening disease. However, most of the oral cancer cases are curable these days, but for that your treatment should start as early as possible. So, it is important to visit your dentist regularly along with maintaining basic dental hygiene and a healthy lifestyle.
