Oral Medicine

Mouth cancer for clinicians part 8: referral

Generally speaking, the earlier a cancer is found and treated, the better the outcome is likely to be with lesser adverse treatment sequelae. In general, cancer prognosis decreases with advanced...

Warfarin and drug interactions: prescribing vigilance

A 68-year-old male attended the Oral Medicine Department of the Liverpool University Dental Hospital. The patient had been referred by his GDP regarding ‘soreness of the gums and roof of mouth’..

Mouth cancer for clinicians part 7: cancer diagnosis and pre-treatment preparation

Clinical diagnosis of an early cancer can be quite straightforward if the clinician has adequate level of awareness and suspicion, but potentally malignant disorders (PMDs) that are likely to...

A case of undiagnosed harlequin syndrome presenting in general dental practice

A 45-year-old female presented to her general dental practitioner for routine dental care. She had rushed to the appointment and presented to her dentist with distinctly demarcated unilateral facial...

Mouth cancer for clinicians part 6: potentially malignant disorders

Some mouth cancers are preceded by clinically obvious potentially malignant disorders (PMDs). There is a range of PMDs known but the most important recognized are erythroplakia (erythroplasia),...

Case report: beware the silver nitrate stick – a risk factor for bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ)

A 61-year-old carpenter was referred to the oral and maxillofacial department by his GDP in March 2011 regarding an asymptomatic ‘white patch’ on the hard palate. Otherwise unaware of the lesion or...

Mouth cancer for clinicians part 5: risk factors (other)

The cause of cancer in most people is still unknown but risk depends on a combination of genes, environment and aspects of our lives (Article 1). It is impossible to control some mouth cancer risk...

Mouth cancer for clinicians part 4: risk factors (traditional: alcohol, betel and others)

Alcohol is a depressant. A small amount depresses anxiety and inhibitions and can make the user feel sociable and talkative; too much and a hangover may result, and the person may not even remember...

Facial skin lesions dentists should know

BCC is the most common type of skin cancer on the sun-exposed areas of face, head and neck. It accounts for about 75% of non-melanoma skin cancers.1,2 BCC presents as an epidermal neoplasm; a...

Pain-related temporomandibular disorder – current perspectives and evidence-based management

TMD may affect up to a third of the population, however, the majority of patients do not seek help for their symptoms.1 The prevalence of pain-related TMD is seen to be higher in females,3,4 however,...

Management of recurrent aphthous stomatitis in children

A diagnosis of recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS) is usually reached following a thorough clinical history (Table 1), together with the physical appearance of the ulcer, if present at the time of...

Oral ulceration in newly diagnosed leukaemic patient with undiagnosed sweet's syndrome

In early 2011, a 53-year-old female patient with a 3-week history of oral ulceration was referred to Oral Medicine from Haematology at the Charles Clifford Dental Hospital. There was no history of...

Mouth cancer for clinicians part 3: risk factors (traditional: tobacco)

The cause of cancer in most people is unclear but risk depends on a combination of genes, environment and aspects of living (Figure 2)..

Mouth cancer for clinicians part 2: epidemiology

Oral and oropharyngeal cancers together are the sixth leading cancer in the world, with a wide geographical variation, although two-thirds of the cases occur in resource-poor countries, such as...

Mouth cancer for clinicians part 1: cancer

The word tumour in Latin means a swelling but a tumour or swelling is not always a cancer. Some tumours may be caused by inflammation, infections, cysts or fluid-filled lesions or be due to new...