Sunday March 2, 2008
Cancers in the mouth
AGE WELL
BY DR Y.L.M
According to the 2003 National Cancer Registry, in Malaysia, there are over 600 new cases of tongue, mouth, gums, salivary glands and oropharyngeal cancer every year. I WAS in Singapore the other day, in a 7-11 shop. I noticed that on the shelves behind the counter, all packs of cigarettes carry rather grotesque photos on them. On closer inspection, these were photos of people with mouth cancer. I didn’t know smoking causes mouth cancer. I only thought it causes lung cancer.
Yes, smoking does cause mouth cancer as well. It is called oral cancer, which comes under a broader group called oropharyngeal cancer (cancer of the mouth or throat).
It’s quite a common cancer. In the United States, there are 30,000 new cases a year.
Out of these, 80,00 people will die.
In Malaysia, there are about over 600 new cases of tongue, mouth, gums, salivary glands and oropharyngeal cancer every year, men and women combined, according to the 2003 National Cancer Registry.
Oral cancer includes cancer of the lips, mouth, tongue, gums and salivary glands.
This is fortunately one of the best cancers to detect early, because it presents in a part of your body that is so prominent and easily seen by yourself or, even if you fail to identify it in a mirror, your family and friends.
When detected early, oral cancer is almost always cured. But unfortunately, so many people still present with it at such a late stage.
Oral cancer is more common in men than women because men tend to smoke more frequently.
If it’s such a ‘good’ cancer to have, relatively speaking, and it’s so easy to detect, then why do so many people present so late with it?
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Oral cancer can be easily mistaken for other common diseases of the mouth. |
This is because this type of cancer is usually confused with other mouth, lips, tongue, cheek and throat diseases. Often the cancer is only discovered with it has spread to other organs, such as the neck lymph nodes.
Another reason is that oral cancer is usually painless. So the hapless patient might think that innocent-looking swelling in her cheek is due to an ingrown wisdom tooth rather than cancer.
How does oral cancer look like? How will I know I have it? A relative I know had a little growth on her upper lip, which she mistook for a cold sore. When she finally went to the doctor six months later, he told her it was cancer.
This is the unfortunate thing about oral cancer. It can manifest like a lot of other common diseases. Most oral cancers are on the lips (easy to see), tongue (easy to feel) or the floor of the mouth (easy to feel).
Things you have to look out for include:
We know that smoking is one of the causes, as anti-smoking campaigns have made very clear. Are there any other causes?
Anything that can damage the internal cell structure and nucleus (DNA) of your mouth, tongue, lips etc and cause them to mutate into cancer cells can cause this cancer.
Tobacco use is one cause, which can be either smoking or chewing tobacco. Chewing tobacco exposes your inner cheek and inner surface of the lips to mutation.
Another is excessive alcohol drinking. Apparently, about 90% of people who have oral cancer have used some form of tobacco. And about 75% of the same people here are frequent drinkers of alcohol.
If you use both tobacco and alcohol, your risk is much higher than either group who uses them singly. Another risk factor is chronic denture irritation caused by poorly fitting dentures. If you smoke and drink alcohol on top of that, these ill-fitting dentures might trap the tobacco and alcohol particles and prolong your mouth’s exposure to them.
If you expose yourself to excessive ultraviolet light (sunlight), it may also cause oral cancer, particularly on the lips.
It has been found that one out of three people with lip cancer have jobs or lifestyles that necessitate them being outdoors for long periods of time.
The HPV (human papillomavirus) is also linked to oral cancer. This is especially common with people who have oral sex a lot. The HPV is linked with cervical cancer, usually, and is a sexually transmitted virus.
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