Oral Cancer Screening

Tobacco, excessive alcohol use, heavy sun exposure, and the HPV virus are all contributors to oral cancers. Your dentist can recognize and diagnose the presence of abnormalities during your visit that may need further investigation.

Oral or mouth cancer can occur in any part of the mouth, and left unattended can lead to life ending circumstances. There is no patient preparation required for an oral cancer screening exam. Your Markic dentist will physically examine your entire mouth with gloved hands. Your mouth will be checked for abnormal lumps or other unusual characteristics. A visual exam will also be made.

If you are a denture wearer, your dentures will be removed to make way for a complete exam of your gums and underlying tissue. There is no pain involved, and examination is quick and easy. An additional optional service is offered where a special light may be used to highlight abnormal areas that appear blue to the observer, where nothing is visible under a regular light.

Velscope™ Oral cancer screening is a personal decision, and is recommended especially if you’re in a high risk group.

If you are a patient who has mouth sores that seem unusual, you should see your dentist as soon as possible. A cancer problem usually presents itself as a small white patch. It can occur anywhere in the mouth, on the tongue, or even on the lips. The area may be come red (in patches) and ulcers can also appear. Even these aberrations can often go undetected and unnoticed by the untrained eye.

If the results raise suspicions, you may be asked to come back for reexamination to see if the situation has progressed, or is still present. Additional investigations (including a biopsy of sample cells) may also be undertaken if further concerns are raised. A thorough exam can not only bring peace of mind, it can also help to find cancer in the early stages where treatment is most effective in curing it.