This month Dr. Oz dedicated a segment of his show to the danger of oral cancer and the importance of oral cancer screenings. Oral cancer kills one person every hour of every day and women are now at a greater risk (rather than men a few years ago). More than 60% of cases are discovered too late and 1 in 4 people with oral cancer will die because of this.
Oral cancer used to be attributed to smoking, tobacco use, and drinking with men statistically at a greater risk. Now the number one cause of oral cancer is the HPV virus. With these new findings, people need to be aware of symptoms and get oral cancer screenings by their dentists on a regular basis (every 6 months).
Oral cancer used to be attributed to smoking, tobacco use, and drinking with men statistically at a greater risk. Now the number one cause of oral cancer is the HPV virus. With these new findings, people need to be aware of symptoms and get oral cancer screenings by their dentists on a regular basis (every 6 months).
Symptoms of oral cancer include:
Pain or numbness in the mouth or lips
Tenderness, burning or a sore that won’t heal
A lump or wrinkled or bumpy patch inside your mouth
Gray, red, or white spots or patches inside your mouth
Difficulty chewing, swallowing, speaking or moving your jaw or tongue
Any change in the way your teeth fit together
Pain or numbness in the mouth or lips
Tenderness, burning or a sore that won’t heal
A lump or wrinkled or bumpy patch inside your mouth
Gray, red, or white spots or patches inside your mouth
Difficulty chewing, swallowing, speaking or moving your jaw or tongue
Any change in the way your teeth fit together
Dr. Oz stresses the importance of demanding an oral screening from your dentists since many dentists don’t do this regularly. Dr. Oz says we need to change the way our dentists take care of us. At Barotz Dental oral cancer screenings are part of our standard of care at every preventative maintenance appointment.
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