Any cancer formed inside the oral cavity can be categorised as mouth or oral cancer. It can include cancers of the lip, tongue, cheek, gums, mouth floor, and mouth palate cancers. It is one the most common cancers in countries like - India, Papua New Guinea, China, Taiwan, and many low-middle-income countries (LMIC). The leading cause is chewing betel quid, tobacco, and areca nut, a common practice in many countries. Smoking and alcohol use are other additional reasons for the same. Besides early mouth cancer diagnosis, having health insurance can help during treatments.
Diagnosis of mouth cancer
You may wonder "How is mouth cancer detected?" Diagnosing mouth cancer is relatively easy as it involves an easily accessible body organ, i.e. mouth. In many cases, the self-diagnosis technique also works but should always be confirmed with experts.
The following diagnostic tests are performed to detect mouth cancer:
- Visual screening and physical examination by health care professionals - The first step is to do a thorough visual screening and physical examination, which involves - visually checking for the presence of any lesion in the mouth.
- Salivary analysis and cytology - Special stains stain the salivary samples obtained from the patients. It will provide an analysis of the cellular morphology of the cells of the oral mucosa.
- Oral biopsy - A small amount of tissue from the mouth cavity is obtained and analysed for cancerous cells. A pathologist would perform this process and provide a detailed report. Regular biopsy is recommended to identify the presence of even the pre-cancerous cells depending upon the symptoms.
- X-ray - Depending upon the areas affected, like gums, an X-ray is performed to gain better insight into the mandibles or maxilla to identify cancerous lesions.
- MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) - Once the presence of mouth cancer is confirmed, the staging of oral cancer is done. For this purpose, various imaging techniques are performed, one of which is MRI, which gives an extended picture of the affected region and the spreading of cells.
- CT - Scan (Computed Tomography Scan) - This is another method to gain better internal images of the oral lesions. It aids in the staging process by telling about the local spreading of the cancerous cells.
- PET imaging (Positron Emission Technology) - This is an excellent and widely used technique to visualise mouth cancer and its local or distant spread. It is done intravenously using a radioactive tracer injected into the blood flow.
Conclusion
Accurate mouth cancer diagnosis assists the doctor in making further decisions for treatment. Surgery and radiotherapy are two commonly used methods for treating early-stage mouth cancers. Depending upon the location of the mouth cancer and the patient's age, the treatment strategy is planned. All these therapies are usually associated with a hefty financial load that can be minimised by going for health insurance.