• Home
• What Do We Treat?
• Cancer in general
• Oral cancer

Oral cancer or mouth cancer is type of head and neck cancer, which is often treated similar to other types of head and neck cancers. It can occur anywhere in the mouth like, tongue, lips, cheek, gums, salivary gland, in the roof and floor of the mouth and in the tonsils.

Causes

Oral cancer happens when there is an uncontrollable growth of cells in the mouth that invade and cause damage to the surrounding tissue. These accumulated cancer cells forms tumor in the mouth, which may spread to other parts of the head and neck.

Symptoms

During the early stages of oral cancer, there will be no symptoms. The most common symptoms of oral cancer include:

• Unexplained bleeding in the mouth
• A sore in the lip or mouth that doesn’t heal
• Painful chewing or swallowing
• A lump or thickening in the skin or lining of the mouth
• Red or white patches in mouth or lips
• Jaw pain or stiffness of jaw
• Tongue pain
• Sore throat
• Mass growing anywhere in mouth
• A lump in the neck
• Bleeding from mouth
• Loosening of teeth without any reason
• Hoarse voice
• Unexplained numbness or tenderness in any area of the face neck or mouth

Risk factors

According to the studies, men are twice more likely to develop oral cancer than women. It more commonly occurs in men who are over the age of 50. The following are most common risk factors for the development of oral cancer:

• Family history of cancer
• Smoking
• Chewing tobacco
• Consumption of alcohol
• Excessive sun exposure
• Weakened immune system
• Certain Human Pappilomavirus (HPV) strains increase the risk of developing cancer

Diagnosis of Oral Cancer

If you find any lumps or growth in your mouth, your doctor may perform the following tests:

• Physical exam : the doctor will examine your lips and mouth for abnormalities
• Brush biopsy or oral tissue biopsy : test to find out the red or white spots in the patients mouth are cancerous or not
• An X ray of the chest may be taken to check if the cancer spread to the lungs
• CT scan will be taken to see if the cancer spread to oropharynx
• MRI scan
• Endoscopy

Treatment for Oral Cancer

The treatment of Oral Cancer varies depending upon the size, stage and location of the cancer found during the diagnosis. The following are some of the common treatment options for mouth cancer:

• Surgery : To remove the tumor and cancerous lymph nodes
• Radiation therapy : aiming radiation beams at the tumor
• Chemotherapy : usage of drugs that kill cancer cells
• Targeted therapy
• Nutrition Therapy

Dr Shiva Kumar is one of the experienced oncology consultant and oral cancer surgeon at North Hospital based in Bangalore. He is a member of Indian association of surgical oncology, who has several years of experience in surgical oncology. With his vast experience he provides the best treatment for Oral Cancer in India, at affordable price.

Authored By : Dr. Shiva Kumar Uppala