What is oral cancer? Oral cancer is also known as mouth cancer. It is the type of cancer that strikes tissues throughout the mouth area such as the tongue, cheeks, lips and even the inside of the mouth. This common type of cancer is usually caused by tobacco use—responsible for around 80% of oral cancer cases. However, there are other risk factors that can cause oral cancer aside from smoking.
You could also be at risk for oral cancer if you have poor nutrition and poor oral health and hygiene. Other risk factors include the habit of chewing your lips or cheeks. Too much exposure to sunlight could also cause lip cancer. Having a family history of oral cancer or mouth cancer could also escalate your risk of developing the disease. There are also health problems that could increase your risk of having this type of cancer such as Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), human papillomavirus (HPV), and leukoplakia. Oral cancer is also more prevalent in men compared to women. Nevertheless, this type of cancer could affect anyone, so every once in a while, visit a dental clinic and seek oral cancer screening near you.
This type of cancer has its symptoms and it includes the following: swelling around your mouth, lips or throat, having an ulcer or red/white patch in your mouth which doesn’t heal, enduring a sore throat or having difficulty swallowing, experiencing difficulty when chewing or moving your tongue or your jaw, experiencing bleeding from your mouth, feeling numbness inside your mouth, having the feeling that your teeth are loose, and even experiencing changes when it comes to your speech or taste.
If you happen to notice any of the oral cancer symptoms mentioned, don’t hesitate to make your way to the dental clinic near you. Again, treatment for oral cancer has a great probability of becoming successful if the disease is detected in its early stage.
Mouth cancer screening could be provided by a dental clinic near you. So if you are looking for an Edina dentist or an oral cancer screening in Edina, know that 44th Street Dental is a dental clinic near you that could be your go-to when it comes to oral cancer screening.
You may ask, “Why go through an oral cancer screening?”
Well, oral cancer screening is the first step in diagnosing possible mouth cancer. This procedure could detect mouth cancer at its early stage and in an early stage of mouth cancer, the tumor and other affected tissues could be surgically removed by a surgeon. In other cases, treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or a combination of treatments could be a method to eradicate cancer cells. Earlier detection can give you a higher chance of yielding a successful outcome and recovery.
If you are worried about the procedure being painful, don’t be. Oral cancer screening is a painless process. Your Edina dentist could accomplish an oral cancer screening in a few minutes and could even make it part of your regular dental hygiene during your visits to the clinic. And should your dentist see any signs of cancer in the mouth, he or she will refer you to a doctor who can provide a more elaborate diagnosis.
Oral cancer or mouth cancer can be treated, but still, prevention is always better than a cure. Take good care of yourself and do take note of the possible oral cancer signs and symptoms. For an oral cancer screening, book an appointment at 44th Street Dental.