Oral Cancer? Me?

Could be. The American Cancer Society estimates nearly 29,000 new cases of oral and oropharyngeal cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year. When newly-diagnosed patients are carefully examined, about 15% will have another cancer in a nearby area such as the larynx, esophagus or lung. Another 10 to 40% will develop cancer of one of these areas or a second oral cancer at a later time.

The good news is, early detection offers the best opportunity for successful treatment. And there are things you can do to lessen your risk for developing oral cancer. Stop using all types of tobacco. About 90% of people with oral cancer use tobacco, and the risk of developing these cancers increases with the amount smoked or chewed.

Alcohol use may also increase your risk for oral cancer. Other risk factors include exposure to ultraviolet light, vitamin A deficiency, and your age and gender. According to the American Cancer Society, oral cancer risk increases with age, especially after age 40 and it is twice as common in men as in women.

Oral cancer begins in the mouth, and may appear in any of these areas: the lips, the inside lining of lips and cheeks, the teeth, the gums, the front two-thirds of the tongue, the floor of the mouth below the tongue, the bony roof of the mouth and the area behind the wisdom teeth.

Oropharyngeal cancer occurs in the part of the throat just behind the mouth.

If you're wondering whether an oral cancer screening is a good idea for you, consider the following signs and symptoms as you decide:

• A sore in the mouth that does not heal (most common symptom)
• Pain in the mouth that doesn't go away
• A persistent lump or thickening in the cheek
• A persistent white or red patch on the gums, tongue, tonsil, or lining of the mouth
• A sore throat or a feeling that something is caught in the throat that doesn't go away
• Difficulty chewing or swallowing
• Difficulty moving the jaw or tongue
• Numbness of the tongue or other area of the mouth
• Swelling of the jaw that causes dentures to fit poorly or become uncomfortable
• Loosening of the teeth or pain around your teeth or jaw
• A change in your voice
• A lump or mass in you neck
• Weight loss