Like many forms of cancer, mouth cancer can strike anyone at any time. However, if you smoke cigarettes or use oral tobacco, are a carrier of the human papillomavirus or HPV, or do not protect your lips from frequent sun exposure, you are at a greater risk of developing oral cancer. While you should work on eliminating risk factors, it is never too early to begin steps to help catch oral cancer when it first begins and is most treatable. Here are two ways you can ensure oral cancer is caught early when it is more treatable than when it reaches more advanced stages or spreads.
Perform a Monthly Self-check Created by the Mouth Cancer Foundation
The Mouth Cancer Foundation has developed a self-check routine that you can perform on yourself to help detect oral cancer and cancers of your head and neck. Breast self-examinations have helped many women detect breast cancer, and they are hoping this self-check becomes just as popular, because it can save lives. You don't need any special equipment and only need clean hands and a mirror in a lighted environment, like your bathroom, to perform it.
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Also check for any new moles or moles that have changed color, shape, or bleed.
Rub your hands along the sides of your neck, under your jaw. Pay attention to whether both sides feel the same, and if you feel any lumps.
Pull your lips outward and feel the tissues for sores or changes in texture.
Feel your gums with your fingers to check for abnormal