Lip cancer is a type of head and neck cancer that affects the lips and surrounding tissue. It can start as a small lump or discoloration and is often treated with chemotherapy and surgery. Risk factors include tobacco and alcohol use, environmental exposure, and poor lifestyle choices. Prevention involves reducing these behaviors and taking care of one’s health.
Lip cancer is a condition of the lips or soft tissue surrounding the mouth in which there are malignant or cancerous cells. Generally, lip cancer is found in the epithelial cells, which are the more sensitive upper layers of skin found around the mouth on the upper or lower lip. In severe cases, the cancer can also involve the deeper layers of the mouth, including the soft tissue, muscle or nerve cells of the face, gums and neck.
In many cases, cancer presents as a small lump or cancerous section of the lip that won’t heal or will go away on its own. Lip cancer can also start as a slight discoloration or change in the reddish-pink lip tissue itself. At the onset of these symptoms, a proper cancer diagnosis can be provided by an oncologist or a doctor who specializes in body cancers.
Lip cancer is a form of head and neck cancer that can be treated effectively if caught early enough in the process. The presence of cancer is most often discovered during a routine visit to the doctor or dentist, but it can also be something the patient notices when the appearance of their face changes. Any changes to your lips or face should be examined by a qualified doctor or oncologist right away.
In most cases, lip cancer is treated with a combination of chemotherapy and surgery when needed. The cancerous cells are uprooted and removed to stop the spread of the malignant cells to other parts of the mouth, face and neck. This treatment is combined with improved lifestyle and oral hygiene habits and follow-up medical care.
It is uncertain what causes many cancers, including lip cancer. However, certain environmental, genetic and lifestyle factors are known to play key roles in the development of skin cancers. Some of the factors known to increase the likelihood of developing cancer in humans are alcohol and drug intake, environmental exposure to chemicals and hazardous substances, genetic predisposition, poor diet, smoking, and lack of exercise adequate.
The risk of lip cancer increases with an inappropriate lifestyle and behavioral choices such as the use of tobacco and alcohol or the habitual nervous chewing of the lips and the internal tissue of the mouth. It is also noted that the risk of lip cancer increases after the age of forty-five. Preventing lip cancer can be as simple as reducing these behaviors and taking care of your health.
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