Every year we are reminded of the need to fully check our bodies for unusual appearances, swellings or changes. Many specialized physicians and imaging studies and tests recognize and detect different types of cancers every day. Dermatologists recognize skin changes and detect skin cancer, mammograms and self- breast examinations detect early breast abnormalities, and colonoscopies (imaging of the large intestines/colon) detect abnormalities and cancers of the colon. What do you know about head and neck cancer? How are head and neck cancers detected and how are they prevented?
Did You Know? “An estimated 54,540 adults (39,290 men and 15,250 women) in the United States will be diagnosed with an oral or oropharyngeal (mouth or mouth and throat) cancer in 2023. Notice that males are affected twice as often as females. In 2020, 476,125 people in the world were diagnosed with an oral or oropharyngeal (oral= mouth, pharynx=throat) cancer,” according to Cancer.net.
Know the Signs-It May Save Your Life
Early Detection is Key. There’s an old adage- “the need to say something if something doesn’t seem right”, and this includes what your body looks and feels like, and the earlier the better! Earlier detection leads to earlier treatments, which leads to greater success stories. When mouth and throat cancers are detected early, the five-year survival rate soars to 86%.
Know When to Call The Dentist/Physician:
- If you have a red or white spot, lump, swelling, or sore inside the mouth or on face/neck that doesn’t heal within a few days, or bleeds.
- Trouble swallowing or speaking, persistence hoarseness, or feeling of having something stuck in the throat
- A mole on the head or neck with changes in color, appearance, size, or bleeds. Also if it has an irregular scabby, rough texture
- Difficulty moving jaw or eating
- Mouth or tongue numbness
We have discussed signs and symptoms to watch out for in your body and to also alert a dentist or physician to, but do you know there are lifestyle factors that may increase your risk of occurrence?
Risk Factors: Primary and most common risk factors may include tobacco usage, alcohol consumption, Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV), and Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). HPV prevalence occurs in over 50% of the population in sexually active adults. For the majority, the body clears the virus on its own. For others, it rears its ugly head with a sign or symptom in the body, often years after contracting, and from an unknown source. Today there is a vaccine offered to prevent HPV, the most common Sexually Transmitted Disease. The vaccine is offered to adolescents before they become sexually active for prevention HPV because it often has no signs or symptoms until cancer is detected.
Brian Sebastian Sr. has a similar story that he is exclusively sharing with Nordonia Hills.News. Brian explains, “one day I woke up with common cold symptoms and some lymph nodes were swollen in my neck. On the right side, it felt more bulged out- the size of a walnut, and it felt firm but not painful. “When the lump wouldn’t go away I knew I had to get it looked at but life gets busy”……………..
Read more next week to find out more about what happened with Brian and the lump he detected on his own……
