Oral Cancer Screenings in Bolingbrook, IL

Cancer is something we all want to avoid. No one wants to have to deal with cancer in their lifetime. We also don’t want the people we love and care about to get it. Unfortunately, it’s almost impossible to predict whether or not a person gets cancer. That’s why we place a lot of emphasis on oral cancer screenings here at Sonrisa Dental + Orthodontics of Bolingbrook in Bolingbrook, IL.

Many things can increase a person’s risk of oral cancer. Smoking is the first one that comes to mind. The longer a person’s smoking history, the higher their risk of getting cancer. Drinking too much alcohol over long periods can also predispose to cancer. That’s why it’s important to limit the intake of tobacco and alcohol.

Importance of Screening

At Sonrisa Dental + Orthodontics of Bolingbrook, we recommend screening to all of our patients. This includes those that are healthy and have no risk factors. As we said, it’s hard to predict whether or not a person will get cancer. Detecting it at an early stage, however, can make all the difference.

The earlier cancer is detected, the higher the cure rate. If cancer is detected at an early stage, we can usually surgically remove it, and the patient will be cured. In later stages, however, cancer starts to spread, making treatment harder and the prognosis worse.

How Does Screening Work?

Are you interested in getting oral cancer screenings near you? Not to worry, we have you covered. Many of our patients are starting to follow our advice and show up for oral cancer screenings. During these visits, we inspect and palpate the oral cavity to check for irregularities.

There are a few things that we worry about. These include masses, ulcers, and areas of discoloration. That’s not to say that finding these things automatically means a person has cancer. In most scenarios, these things are benign. Nonetheless, we’ll usually take a biopsy and send it to a lab for analysis. Cancer can only be diagnosed using a biopsy. If something looks benign, we might not take a biopsy straight away and ask you to come back in a few weeks to see if it healed.