• Tweet
• Share
• Email
• Print

MILWAUKEE - Thirty thousand people in the U.S. will be diagnosed with oral cancer this year. The good news-- it's one of the most curable cancers when caught early, and doctors have more ways than ever to screen for it.

Jim Heidenreich, 70, has always been good about going to the dentist. But it was actually his primary care doctor who noticed something wrong about a year ago. Jim was diagnosed with oral cancer.

"I have this condition that has to be dealt with, but I also very much am interested in quality of life," Jim explains.

One of the ways he enjoys life is by playing golf. One of his golf buddies is also one of his dentists, Denis Lynch, a professor of oral and maxillofacial pathology at Marquette University.

"He had some oral problems, and needed some dental work, so we had that taken care of here at Marquette," Dr. Lynch says matter-of-factly.

Dr. Lynch has many tools to screen patients for oral cancer, including a device called ViziLite Plus, which makes anything abnormal light up.

"Every time that you go for a periodic examination in a dental office, you'll receive an oral cancer exam. You may not be told about it, but you will," Dr. Lynch says.

Other techniques are a Biopsy Punch, which removes a tiny piece of tissue from the mouth, and the VELscope, which shines a reflective light into the mouth. What doctors find isn't always pretty, but most Oral Cancer doesn't really hurt, and isn't even visible to the naked eye.

"If you're not examined in a dental office, they'll never be found," Dr. Lynch warns.

The main risk factor for oral cancer is tobacco use. For now Jim, a smoker, says he's just going to take things day by day.

"You gotta be honest with your dentist, you gotta be honest with your doctors, and see what they can do to help you," Jim suggests.

Recent studies show a link between human papillomavirus and oral cancer. HPV causes cervical cancer.

Oral cancer is the sixth most common cancer in men, and the number of cases in women is rising. If caught late, the survival rate drops to less than 10%.