Oral Cancer Facts You Should Know

In our first post to this blog, we talked about the connection between your oral health and your overall wellbeing—something most patients rarely, if ever, think about. Today we’d like to look at another aspect of oral health that doesn’t get much attention: oral cancer.

The Oral Cancer Foundation reports that “approximately 40,000 people in the US will be newly diagnosed with oral cancer in 2012.” What’s more, other statistics indicate that one American dies from oral cancer every hour, and that oral cancer claims more lives nationwide than cervical or skin cancer.

Why is this?

Because, often, an oral cancer diagnosis isn’t made until the disease has already progressed to an advanced stage, where treatment may not be effective.

That’s why an oral cancer screening is a standard part of every regular visit to Bethesda Sedation Dentistry. Using ViziLite Plus in combation with TBlue 630, Dr. Klotz and Dr. Schlossberg can spot oral cancer before it’s visible to the naked eye.

That’s a key aspect of treating oral cancer. By the time the white lesions associated with oral cancer are visible, treatment is often not effective. But when a diagnosis can be made earlier on, while the disease is still in its earliest stages of development, effective treatment from Dr. Klotz and Dr. Schlossberg is possible.

Are you curious about how oral cancer is diagnosed and treated? Call Bethesda Sedation Dentistry with your questions or to schedule an appointment with Dr. Schlossberg or Dr. Klotz. We gladly serve patients from Bethesda, Chevy Chase, Rockville, Washington D.C., and surrounding areas.