Tongue cancer is a rare type of tumor that causes symptoms such as sores, red or white spots on the tongue, pain in the tongue that does not improve over time, bad breath, discomfort when swallowing and numbness in the mouth. It most often happens in adults who have a history of smoking, excessive alcohol intake and poor oral hygiene habits.
This disease, which is a type of head and neck cancer, can affect both the upper and lower parts of the tongue and is usually diagnosed in more advanced stages of the disease, which is when the symptoms are more apparent.
Read too: Head and neck cancer: what it is, symptoms, causes and treatment
It is important that tongue cancer is identified and treated immediately, with surgery usually being performed to remove the tumor and radiotherapy and chemotherapy sessions in some cases.
Main symptoms
The main symptoms of tongue cancer are:
- Pain in the tongue that doesn’t go away;
- Appearance of red or white spots on the tongue and oral cavity, in some cases, which may also be painful;
- Discomfort when swallowing and chewing;
- Bad breath;
- Bleeding on the tongue, which can be noticed mainly when biting or chewing, for example;
- Numbness in the mouth;
- Appearance of a lump on the tongue that does not disappear over time;
- Sores on the tongue;
- Lumps (tongues) on the neck.
Symptoms of tongue cancer usually appear when the disease is already at a more advanced stage, so diagnosis may be delayed.
How the diagnosis is made
The diagnosis of tongue cancer is usually made by chance, during a routine consultation with a general practitioner or dentist.
If you want to confirm your risk of mouth cancer, make an appointment with the specialist closest to you:
To confirm the diagnosis, a biopsy is usually recommended, in which a sample of the lesions is collected and sent to the laboratory so that the characteristics of the cells at the site can be analyzed, allowing the doctor to identify cellular changes suggestive of cancer.
Possible causes
The causes of tongue cancer are not yet well established, but some factors may increase the risk of developing this type of cancer, such as:
- Bad oral hygiene habits;
- Smoking;
- Excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages;
- Family history of mouth cancer or another type of oral cancer;
- HPV virus infection;
- Infection with the bacteria that causes syphilis, the Treponema pale.
It is important that the risk factors for tongue cancer are identified so that it can be avoided and/or treated and, thus, it is possible to prevent the progression of the cancer.
How the treatment is carried out
Treatment for tongue cancer depends on the location of the tumor and the extent of the disease, with surgery usually being performed to remove the malignant cells. If the cancer is located on the back or under the tongue, radiotherapy may be recommended to eliminate the tumor cells.
In more advanced cases, the doctor may recommend a combination of treatments, that is, he may recommend chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy and surgery together.
Bibliography
- NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR RARE DISEASES. Tongue Cancer. Available at: <https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/tongue-cancer/>. Accessed on November 29, 2019
- MEMORIAL SLOAN KETTERING CANCER CENTER. Tongue Cancer. Available at: <https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/types/mouth/types-mouth/tongue>. Accessed on November 29, 2019
- THE ORAL CANCER FOUNDATION. Oral Cancer Facts. Available at: <https://oralcancerfoundation.org/facts/>. Accessed on November 29, 2019
