Dr. Shubham Jain
Mouth cancers or Oral Cancers are one of the most common cancers that we see in our clinics every day. It can affect one or more parts of the mouth, such as lips, gums, tongue, cheeks, floor of mouth or roof of the mouth. As they grow, they may also involve either jaws or the skin of the face or can spread to lymph nodes in the neck or elsewhere in the body. Most oral cancers are Squamous Cell Carcinoma, which is a cancer that arises from the lining on the inside of the mouth.
Abuse of tobacco (in any form i.e., smoked such as cigarette or bidi; and smokeless such as gutka or khaini), areca nut (betel quid) or alcohol puts people at risk of developing such cancers. They are risk factors by themselves, but people who consume all of them, are at an even greater risk of developing cancer. Quitting or abstaining from such habits, may in fact be the best safeguard from mouth cancers.
A non-healing ulcer or sore, which may or may not be painful or which can appear white or red, is the most common symptom of oral cancer.
A new lump in the neck that does not go away after several weeks can also be a sign of mouth cancer. A recent or unexplained loosening of a tooth, which does not heal even after extraction, may also be worrisome.
An oral self-check done once a month, by everyone over the age of 16 years after the teeth have been cleaned might be lifesaving, by detecting mouth cancer early. One just needs a mirror and a good light source and can either check him or herself with clean fingers or ask for a friend’s help and takes less than 2 minutes.
> Look inside the lips. Feel the tissue surfaces around the lips and cheeks.
> Look at the gums from the front and using the small mirror, look at the tongue side through another mirror, to view the inner gums.
> By lifting your head back, look at the roof of your mouth and feel with your forefinger if any bumps or growths are present. Also, note if any color changes are evident.
> Take a gauze or tissue and gently pull your tongue out slowly. View all surfaces, top, bottom, sides, to see if any color changes or if any red or white lesions are present. Also note if any other abnormal changes are present, or if any wound takes too long to heal.
> Feel for lumps in the neck and lower jaw region, on both sides
Oral cancer is usually first treated with surgery. Depending upon the extent and spread of cancer, removal of the affected parts of the mouth may be necessary. It may at times be necessary to perform reconstructive surgery, to compensate for the cosmetic or functional deficit caused because of cancer. In advanced stages, radiation therapy and/or chemotherapy may be recommended after surgery, depending on the burden of disease at the beginning of treatment. |
