Do you have sores or cankers in your mouth that don’t go away even after 2 or 3 weeks? Do you have red or white patches on your mouth or lips? Do you experience pain in your tongue, throat, or ear? Does your voice sound hoarse or do you have difficulty swallowing? “if you answered yes to any of these questions, then it is better to get yourself checked for oral cancer”, says Dr. Shiva Kumar at OncoIndia, Bangalore.
Oral cancer can occur anywhere in the mouth like the tongue, lips, cheek, gums, salivary gland, in the roof and floor of the mouth, and in the tonsils. The most common type of oral cancer is squamous cell carcinoma, where the cells lining the mouth and tongue grow in an uncontrollable manner forming tumors.
"The tough part of oral cancer is that in most cases it goes undetected during the initial stages”, says Dr. Shiva kumar. Some of the symptoms might look like that of a common cold or ordinary, which results in patients not noticing them soon. This is exactly what happened in the case of Manohar (name changed), a 45-year-old accountant working in Bengaluru. Manohar had a sore throat for a few days and an ulcer on the side of his tongue that refused to heal. He did not give it much thought initially. However, the ulcer soon started making it difficult for him to eat, drink or even speak without causing immense pain. At this stage, he decided to visit a doctor as it didn’t feel like a normal mouth ulcer.
Manohar’s whole life came crashing down around him when he was diagnosed with oral cancer. He was a teetotaller with no drinking or smoking habits and could not understand how he could have oral cancer. Dr. Shiva Kumar had to explain to Manohar that though smoking and alcohol consumption increased the risk of developing oral cancer, it can also develop due to the genetic predisposition of individuals.
Dr. Shiva Kumar suggested a partial glossectomy, partial removal of the tongue, to treat Manohar. After the surgery, Manohar had extensive counseling and speech therapy to regain his speech which had been affected. Manohar is now back to his job and taking life one day at a time. He is grateful that he is completely cured and is thankful for the great team he had at OncoIndia.
"The common misconception is that oral cancer affects only the mouth", says Dr. Shiva Kumar. However, it tends to spread to other regions via the lymph nodes. Also, radiation treatment and chemotherapy affect not just the oral cavity but also the muscles in the shoulders, neck, and arms. It causes difficulty in eating and swallowing, and weakness of shoulder muscles and arms.
Dr. Shiva Kumar urges people to consult a doctor if there is unexplained bleeding or a sore in the lip or mouth that doesn’t heal, pain while chewing or swallowing, red or white patches in the mouth or lips, jaw pain or stiffness of the jaw, tongue pain, sore throat, mass growing anywhere in the mouth, a lump in the neck, bleeding from the mouth, loosening of teeth without any reason, hoarse voice, unexplained numbness or tenderness in any area of the face neck or mouth. “In the case of oral cancer caution is always better than being sorry later”, says Dr. Shiva Kumar.
