Oral Cancer | Mouth Cancer

Tongue cancer is one of the most common types of oral or mouth cancer. Oral cancer is defined as the abnormal growth of cells in any part of the lips or mouth. Most oral cancers are known to commence in the lips or mouth lining. Other names for this type of cancer are oropharyngeal cancer and oral cavity cancer. Oral cancer, which includes cancers of the lips, tongue, cheeks, floor of the mouth, hard and soft palate, sinuses, and pharynx (throat), can be life threatening. Lip cancer, jaw cancer and gum cancer are other common cancers. The term oropharyngeal cancer includes all these, cheek cancer and teeth cancer.

Mouth cancer symptoms | Oral cancer symptoms

Tongue cancer symptoms | Teeth cancer symptoms

What Are the Symptoms of Mouth Cancer

The most common signs of mouth cancer include:

Early symptoms of mouth cancer and early signs of mouth cancer

• Swellings/thickenings, lumps or bumps, rough spots or crusts areas on the lips, gums, or other areas inside the mouth
• Velvety white, red, patches in the mouth

Start of mouth cancer | mouth tumor may be:

• Unexplained bleeding in the mouth
• Unexplained numbness, loss of feeling, or pain/tenderness in any area of the face, mouth, or neck
• Persistent sores on the face, neck, or mouth that bleed easily and do not heal within 2 weeks
• A soreness or feeling that something is caught in the back of the throat
• Difficulty chewing or swallowing, speaking, or moving the jaw or tongue
• Hoarseness, chronic sore throat, or change in voice
• Ear pain
• A change in the way your teeth or dentures fit together
• Dramatic weight loss

Lip cancer symptoms and gum cancer symptoms may not be very clear or indicative of cancer. A high degree of suspicion and some tests therefore  are mandatory.

Oral cancer causes | Mouth cancer causes

Risk factors for the development of oral cancer include

• Smoking . Smokers are six times more likely to develop oral cancers.
• Mouth ulcer cancer
• Smokeless tobacco users. Users are 50 times more likely to develop cancers of the cheek, gums, and lining of the lips.
• Excessive consumption of alcohol.
• Family history of cancer.
• Excessive sun exposure, especially at a young age.
• Human papillomavirus (HPV).  risk factors for Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma (OSCC)

 Diagnosis

The diagnosis begins with the doctor conducting an oral screening exam as part of your routine dental exam.

You may also require a biopsy to determine any suspicious looking areas.

You may require some other tests like:

• MRI
• CECT scan
• PET scan

Mouth cancer treatment | Oral cancer treatment

Tongue cancer treatment

Radiotherapy

Two kinds of radiotherapy are used for oral cancer:

External beam radiotherapy directs the radiation beam from a machine outside the body to the affected area.

Internal radiotherapy, also known as brachytherapy, involves putting little radioactive wires beside the cancer area for a period and then removing them.

Surgery

The most widely recognized treatment for oral cancer is surgery. The operation might remove the cancer and a portion of surrounding tissue.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is a treatment that uses medicines that kill cancer cells, or help prevent them from growing back. Chemotherapy is often used in combination with surgery or radiotherapy but in some cases is the sole treatment.

Oral cancer stages | Tongue cancer stages

Stage 4 Oral cancer

Cancer cells may not be present in the lymph nodes, or they may have spread to one lymph node, which is located on the same side of the head or neck as the primary tumor or cancer may spread to the structures present on the opposite side of head and neck crossing the midline.

The oral cancer tumor is any size and may or may have spread to lymph nodes. Cancer cells may have spread to distant sites, most often the lungs.

You should know that treatment for pain is part of cancer treatment. It is important to resist the big myth that because cancer is a serious disease, pain is to be expected. Most people can get complete relief for their pain — or at least significant relief that allows them to enjoy the activities of daily life.

What is advanced or metastatic oral cancer

Oral cancer survival rate depends upon detection of cancer at first stage of mouth cancer, aggressive treatment and adequate pain relief. Advanced oral cancer includes stage 3 and stage 4 and terminal cancer. Stage 3 includes when cancer spreads to other tissues in and around the ovary and / or lymph nodes. Stage 4 includes metastasis.

Metastasis happens when cancer cells break away from a primary tumor and enter the bloodstream or lymphatic system (the system that produces stores and carries the cells that fight infections). When cancer cells spread and form a new tumour in a different organ, the new tumor is a metastatic tumor, the cells of which come from the original tumor. The most common sites of metastasis from ovary cancer tumors are the liver, lungs, bones and brain. Cancer can spread to other parts of the body, too.

Some people with metastatic cancer do not have symptoms. Their metastases may be found by tests, which may be performed for other reasons such as PET, MRI or CT scan. When symptoms do occur, the type and frequency depend on the size and location of the metastasis. For example, cancer that spreads to the bones is likely to cause pain and can lead to bone fractures. Shortness of breath may be a sign of lung involvement.

Liver metastasis

If they do have symptoms, they may be vague and can include:

• Loss of appetite or feeling full early
• Fatigue
• Fever
• Itching
• Pain in the abdomen
• Swelling in the legs
• Weight loss
• Yellowing of the skin or whites of the eyes, called jaundice

Lungs metastasis

Because the lungs get blood flow from the rest of the body, cancer can travel there from other organs. Cancer that has spread to the lungs often affects breathing.

Symptoms include:

• A cough that doesn’t go away
• Chest pain
• Blood in the mucus
• Trouble breathing
• Weight loss

Bone metastasis

When cancer travels to the bones, it can weaken them and cause them to release stored calcium. Symptoms include:

• Bone pain
• Constipation, nausea, and loss of appetite from high calcium levels in the blood
• Broken bones
• Numbness or weakness in the legs and possibly the arms
• Pain in the back or neck

Are you suffering from pain?

Any cancer has only 4 treatments. Surgery, chemotherapy, radiation and pain relief treatment / pain management.

What is the stage of cancer? Stage decides the treatment. All advanced cancers cannot be treated by chemotherapy and / or radiation therapy. Chemotherapy / radiation therapy may not benefit in stage 4 cancer. Recent research tells that unnecessary chemotherapy may reduce quality & life span too. Pain is the most common problem in stage 3 or 4. Please remember Pain definitely can be controlled or treated at any stage of cancer. Even if you are taking ayurvedic treatment for cancer or homeopathic treatment, it will not help in pain relief – You must take pain management treatment. Pain relief is important for continuing any treatment. Pain relief needs dedicated pain management treatment usually offered by Pain specialist doctors. In addition to best cancer specialist in India, ACCN is proud to have best pain management specialist doctor in Delhi and in India. Pain management and cancer treatment goes side by side. Demand a pain free cancer treatment from your oncologist or cancer specialist doctor.

One must always remember that in stage 3 / stage 4 / terminal cancer – palliative care and pain relief treatment is usually the priority treatment so that pain relief continues at home too.  Pain free journey of cancer ie pain free cancer treatment helps in prolongation of life.

Advanced-Cancer Care Network, Delhi, India, with its branches (contact) at Delhi and Rohtak (Haryana) is a unique conglomeration of super-specialist doctors, who believe in well-being of human life.  ACCN is the best cancer hospital for stage 3 cancer, stage 4 cancer, advanced stage cancer, terminal cancer, Cancer pain management and palliative care. It offers the unique and state-of-the-art treatment for pain relief and cancer treatment in India.

Click on Pain relief in Oral Cancer to know the best pain management methods at home for oral cancer or mouth cancer.

Palliative care

Palliative care is designed to give symptomatic relief to the patient, control the side-effects of illness or treatment and improve quality of life of cancer patients. Palliative care treatment is provided by a medical specialist, other than oncosurgeon or oncologist. This medical specialist is known as “Pain & Palliative Care Specialist”. India has very limited number of such specialists and if you are also not able to find one for yourself, please contact ACCN (Advanced – Cancer Care Network), we are proud to have India”s best and most qualified Pain Specialists and Palliative Care Specialists.

Click on Understanding palliative care to know the palliative care treatment for stage 3 cancer or stage 4 cancer or advanced stage cervical cancer.

Role of Palliative Care Treatment

It is usually said that role of palliative care starts, when cancer becomes incurable or advanced stage or terminal or at end-of-life. It is one of the biggest myths in cancer treatment protocols. Palliative care specialist must be consulted and involved in the cancer treatment right from the first day when cancer is diagnosed and treatment is started. Initially when cancer is at stage 1 or 2, complete focus is on cancer cure and palliative care has minimal but very important role. As the cancer (if) progresses, gradually role of palliative care also enlarges. In stage 3 or stage 4. role of palliative care becomes much more important than other regular cancer treatments.

Click on How we can help to know about our various services for advanced cancer patients.

Click on Symptom control to understand that how we can provide suffering free life to advanced cancer patient.

Benefits of Palliative Care

• Makes patient feel better and stay active during treatment
• Manages side-effects of cancer treatment
• Facilitates as high a quality of life as possible
• Helps cancer treatments do a better job
• Can be curative as well as life-supporting treatment
• Cancer diet planning
• Improves survival outcomes
• Increases immunity levels
• Improves communication between patient and family members
• Maintains hope and stick to principals of ethics