Laskin, D. M., Swecker, T. K. (2016, August). Oral cancer detection.

Dimensions of Dental

Hygiene, 14(8), 60, 63-65.

This article looks at dental hygienists role in the detection of oral cancer. Laskin and

Swecker stress the importance of preforming an oral examination, as oral cancer is usually

clearly visible and detectable. They go on to identify factors, which increase an individual’s risk

of having oral cancer. These include tobacco use, alcohol consumption, exposure to sun, and

individuals with HPV. One factor that may actually lower an individual’s risk of oral cancer is

eating a healthy amount of fruits and vegetables. Heavy drinkers increased risk of oral cancer

may also be related to diet as it is common for them to have a poor nutrition. Clinicians are urged

to educate patients on how to preform intra and extra oral self-examinations and possible

pathologic concerns. Although, there are a variety methods used to identify oral cancer such as

toluidine blue dye and the use of fluorescent light, health history, biopsy, and careful

examination is the best practice.

I found this article very useful and it directly affects me since cancer detection is a very

important part of being a dental hygienist. I agree with this article and feel hygienist play a major

role in cancer detection because of where they fit in the oral health care team. I also agree that

the best practice for oral cancer diagnosis is through careful examination, biopsy, and health

history. Before reading this article, I had never heard of vital screening with toluidine. This

article helped me understand how this process is done. A downside to using this type of

screening is that it doesn’t detect early changes in the mucosa. Another thing this article

mentioned that I hadn’t heard before was for patients who use chewing tobacco. If a patient who

uses chewing tobacco refuses to quite, you can recommend they position it in different places in
their mouth instead of always putting it in the same spot. This is obviously not going to prevent

oral cancer and quitting would be the best option. This article directly related to things I have

learned in oral pathology. The pictures of squamous cell carcinoma were erythroleuko, which we

talked about in class as being an indication of possible cancer. Furthermore, the pictures of

squamous cell carcinoma helped me understand how to identify it on a patient. This article also

related to dental nutrition. It talked about how eating fruits and vegetables reduces the risk of

oral cancer. This reinforces that having a healthy well balanced diet plays an important role in

our oral and over all health.