Oral cancer screening — early detection, by design.

The mouth is the most accessible part of the body to examine, but it's also a place where early disease is easy to miss. Most patients with early oral cancer have no pain — what they have is a small change in the appearance of their mucosa. A white patch that wasn't there a year ago. A small asymmetric area on the tongue. An ulcer that didn't heal.

Detected early, oral cancer has a five-year survival rate above 80%. Detected late, that figure drops sharply. The work of screening is the work of catching things while they're still small.

Specialist screening is particularly valuable for patients with one or more of the following:

• Current or past tobacco use (smoking, snuff, chewing)
• Regular alcohol consumption (the risk multiplies with tobacco)
• HPV exposure (oral or oropharyngeal)
• Family history of head and neck cancer
• A previously diagnosed potentially malignant disorder (leukoplakia, erythroplakia, lichen planus)
• Any concerning lesion or non-healing ulcer noticed by you or your dentist

Patients without these risk factors can still develop oral cancer — and increasingly do, often through HPV — so any suspicious finding is worth investigating regardless of profile.

• Leukoplakia — white patches that cannot be wiped off
• Erythroplakia — red velvety patches (carry higher malignant potential than white)
• Non-healing ulcers — any sore not resolving in two to three weeks
• Asymmetric or irregular lesions — particularly on the lateral tongue, floor of mouth, or soft palate
• Persistent lumps or thickening in the cheek, tongue, or floor of mouth
• Unexplained tooth mobility or numbness in the jaw

A screening consultation is a comprehensive examination of every surface inside the mouth — palate, floor, lateral and ventral tongue, retromolar areas, lips, gums, and pharynx — plus palpation of the neck for lymph node changes. We use both visual examination and tactile assessment.

Suspicious findings are photographed and measured. Where indicated, we take a biopsy for laboratory analysis. Most findings turn out to be benign — but a clear answer is always better than a question mark.

If a malignant or potentially malignant condition is diagnosed, we refer you promptly to the appropriate oncology team and continue to coordinate with your general dentist and physician.