Swollen Gums Do Not Indicate Mouth Cancer

Mouth cancer is a serious illness that affects any of the soft tissues inside or outside the mouth area. Signs of the cancerous growths may be seen on the lips, the tongue, the insides of the cheeks, the gums, the roof of the mouth and even in the back of the mouth where the wisdom teeth are. Like any other cancer, the earlier the diagnosis is made and treatment begun, the better the chances are the condition can be healed. Unfortunately, since many patients are not aware of the signs this form of cancer brings with it, they may not make their complaints known until much later. Many mistakenly wait for their gums to swell to truly believe something is wrong.

Swollen gums do not indicate mouth cancer. Even though this is a well known fact in the medical community, this bit of knowledge has not trickled down to the patient base. This leaves lesions sometimes unreported. Patients who may not be as conscientious about setting up their oral care appointments find the average family doctor does not examine the mouth at all. Sure, the doctor might take a look at the back of the throat during a physical. But, overall any lesions or white spots in the mouth (if they are even noticed) in the mouth of a patient by a general practice doctor, are thought to fall under the jurisdiction of a dentist.

Interestingly, dentists often think such lesions are clearly in the realm of responsibility of the primary care physician, and the patient is caught in the middle. If she or he is not able to set up regular checkups with either doctor or doesn’t mention the lesions or odd spots noticed in the mouth, mouth cancer can continue to grow without interruption. Rather than asking, the patient may assume no news is good news and simply ignore the spots if the doctors don’t bring them up.

Patients need to be aware remaining silent should never be an option. Even if you find yourself over communicating, it’s better to ask too many questions than not enough. This is especially crucial for patients who are in the risk groups associated with this deadly disease. The typical risk group consists of patients over 40, those who use tobacco in any form, drink alcohol and those who suffer from sunburns on a yearly basis. Of course, even those who are not affected by any of these risk factors still have a chance to contract the disease.

Remember, it’s crucial to remember swollen gums do not indicate mouth cancer. But, occasional mouth sores, red lumpy areas in the mouth, white lumpy areas, bleeding mouth lumps and an un-healing mouth sore can be warning signs. As a matter of fact, they are considered the first visible signs of mouth cancer. If any one of these conditions is experienced by you, it is vital you let the dentist look past your swollen gums!