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Squamous cell carcinoma is a common type of tongue cancer, with symptoms including sore throat, discolored spots, bleeding, and numbness. Risk factors include smoking, alcohol use, and oral irritation. Treatment options include surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, with a prognosis that varies by stage of the disease.
Squamous cell carcinoma is one of the most common types of tongue cancer. Symptoms vary depending on the location of the tumor and the stage of the disease. Medical professionals treat this cancer with radiation, chemotherapy, and surgery.
Symptoms of tongue cancer include a sore throat or pain when swallowing, a sore spot in the mouth that doesn’t heal, or a discolored, reddish-pink or gray spot on the tongue that doesn’t heal. Patients may also experience bleeding from the tongue or numbness in the mouth. Rarely, individuals might experience ear pain or changes in their voice. Patients who have advanced cancer could develop liver problems or anemia.
Squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue usually affects people over the age of 50, and men develop the disease at three times the rate than women. About 80% of all people who develop tongue cancer are smokers. Other risk factors include chewing or smokeless tobacco, heavy alcohol use, and chronic oral irritation from dental cavities or other problems in the mouth.
Medical professionals diagnose the disease by taking a biopsy of the affected area. They might also take chest X-rays to look for cancer in the lungs or order a computed tomography (CT) scan of the neck and head to look for cancer in the lymph nodes. In a procedure called endoscopy, a healthcare professional inserts a tiny camera onto a long, narrow tube in the body to look for tumors or cancerous cells in the larynx, airways, or esophagus.
Small tumors on the tongue can be surgically removed. Patients whose cancer has spread to the lymph nodes may require an additional surgical procedure called a neck dissection. This procedure often results in the loss of one or both lymph nodes, but reduces the chance of the cancer returning. Patients might also be treated with radiation or chemotherapy.
Surgery for squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue is often disfiguring. Some patients choose to have reconstructive surgery after the tumor is removed. Tongue cancer patients sometimes have trouble speaking, eating or swallowing after the operation.
The prognosis for survival varies by patient. Those whose cancer is diagnosed early have an approximately 70 percent chance of remaining cancer-free for five years after treatment. The odds drop to about 30% for people diagnosed in the later stages of the disease. Patients whose cancer has spread to the lymph nodes or lungs at the time of diagnosis typically have a less than 50% chance of survival.
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