Oral Cancer Specialist

Farrokh Bashiri, DDS Dental Implant Specialist & Periodontist
located in Concord, CA & Albany, CA

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Oral cancers affect close to 50,000 Americans every year. At the office of Dr. Bashiri, Farrokh Bashiri, DDS, works with men and women living in Concord and Albany, California, to diagnose oral cancers expediently and effectively. To learn more about the types of oral cancer treatments and diagnosis methods, schedule an appointment to meet with Dr. Bashiri online or by phone today.

Oral Cancer Q & A

What are the symptoms of oral cancer?

Oral cancer is notorious for developing anywhere in your mouth, namely your tongue, cheek lining, lips, gums, or on the root or floor of your mouth.

Since identifying the presence of oral cancer on your own can be difficult and at times impossible, Dr. Bashiri recommends that you stay vigilant of any of the following symptoms:

  • Bleeding sores
  • Tooth instability
  • Pain in your jaw
  • Difficulty chewing or swallowing
  • Sores that heal slowly
  • Growths or lumps in your skin
  • Tongue pain

You should schedule an appointment with Dr. Bashiri not only if you’ve experienced these symptoms, but also if they get worse over time.

What are the different types of oral cancer?

There are five main types of oral cancer:

Squamous cell carcinoma

Squamous cell carcinoma refers to when the squamous cells located in your throat and mouth mutate and become abnormal. Generally speaking, these cells are flat.

Verrucous carcinoma

Verrucous carcinoma is a slow-growing type of cancer that’s entirely made up of squamous cells. It can spread to other parts of your body, though it starts by staying close to nearby tissue.

Minor salivary gland carcinoma

The minor salivary glands are located in the lining of your mouth and throat. Cancerous cells in the minor salivary glands can lead to multiple kinds of oral cancer, including cystic and mucoepidermoid carcinoma, and polymorphous low-grade adenocarcinoma.

Lymphoma

Lymphoma develops in the lymph tissue located in your tonsils and at the base of your tongue.

Benign oral cavity tumors

Benign oral cavity tumors aren’t cancerous, though if left unaddressed they can quickly develop into cancer. In most cases, Dr. Bashiri recommends surgical removal of benign tumors as quickly as possible.

What is oral cancer diagnosed?

Oral cancer screenings are the most effective way for Dr. Bashiri to determine the nature of a tumor. He can perform two types of screenings, extraoral and intraoral:

Extraoral screening

Dr. Bashiri checks areas outside of your mouth to look for various things:

  • Face: asymmetry, discoloring, swelling, and protrusions
  • Eyes: evaluate eye movement, drainage, and swelling
  • Ears and nose: examine the health of sinuses and auricle, and the presence of lesions
  • Neck: check lymph nodes for masses, swelling, and pain
  • Thyroid: swallowing capabilities
  • Lips: symmetry, lip movement, texture, and color

Once this examination is complete, he looks inside your mouth.

Intraoral screening

As part of an intraoral screening, Dr. Bashiri checks for any of the following issues:

  • Cheek lining: texture and color irregularities, growths, and hidden masses
  • Tongue: movement issues, spasms, ulcerations, and swelling
  • The floor of your mouth: sores, inflammation, and growths
  • Tonsils: redness, asymmetry, ulcerations, and growths
  • Hard and soft palate: tooth instability, ulcerations, and white and red spots

Dr. Bashiri can recommend the best treatment option after completing your oral cancer screening.

If you’ve noticed any signs or symptoms that could indicate oral cancer, schedule a screening with Dr. Bashiri online or by phone today.