How a dental checkup could save your life
Unfortunately, oral cancers are the 6th most common cancer around the world. In Australia, oral cancer makes up 2-3% of all cancers diagnosed.
Did you know that a simple dental checkup can help to:
- Reduce your risk of oral cancer by discussing risk factors and how to remove or reduce them
- Detect early pre-cancerous lesions before they turn malignant
- Detect oral cancer so referral to an Oral Medicine specialist can be done as soon as possible
During a routine dental checkup, our Claremont dentist will check the ‘soft tissues’ or pink areas on the insides of your mouth. This includes your inner cheeks, top of your mouth, bottom of your mouth, tongue (top, bottom and sides), and your throat. Here, the dentist is looking for lumps, bumps or colour changes in the tissues that may indicate cellular change. Sometimes abnormal colour changes, lumps, bumps or growths can indicate dental pathology. Most of the time, these lesions are no cause for concern, but sometimes they may indicate a pre-cancerous lesion, or an oral cancer. It’s important to know that if you have a non-healing area in your mouth that is present for 2 weeks, this could be an oral cancer until proven otherwise. It’s important to contact your dentist as soon as possible if you have any concerns.
How does a dentist detect oral cancers?
- Visually with adequate lighting
- Use of detection devices e.g. VELscope
- Biopsy of the lesion and pathology report
- Palpating tissues to check for any hardening or fixation
There are a number of reasons your risk of oral cancer may increase, and these include:
- Current smoking habit (or previous smoking habit, even if just social)
- Alcohol consumption
- Use of smokeless tobacco (e.g. betel leaf or areca nut chewing)
- Family or personal history of smoking
- Use of mouthwash containing alcohol
As well as letting you know of any lesions that are concerning, your dentist can also discuss with you these risk factors and how you can reduce your risk. Small changes can make a big difference. Next time you are tempted to cancel our reschedule your dental checkup, think again! This visit could just save your life!
Do you have concerns about oral cancers in your mouth? Call our friendly Claremont dental team on 6143 5655 or book online here for a consultation.
