Oral Cancer essays

Oral Cancer essays Approximately 30,000 Americans will be diagnosed with oral cancer every year and of those 30,000 people nearly half of them will die within the next five years. Oral cancer is a very deadly disease that most people know very little about. The death rate associated with oral cancer is particularly high due to the fact that it is discovered late in its development. Oral cancer causes more than 8,000 deaths annually. There are many factors that can cause the development of oral cancer. Oral cancer can be caused by smoking tobacco, smokeless tobacco, excessive consumption of alcohol, and by having a family history of cancer. Age is frequently named as a risk factor for oral cancer, as most of the time it occurs in those over the age of 40. The age of diagnosed patients may indicate a time component in the biochemical or biophysical processes of aging cells that allows malignant transformation, or perhaps, immune system competence diminishes with age. The accumulative damage from other factors, such as tobacco use, are the real culprits. Although it may take several decades of smoking or chewing, to precipitate the development of cancer. Tobacco use in all of its many forms are the leading cause of oral cancer. At least 75 percent of those people diagnosed with oral cancer are tobacco users. When both alcohol and tobacco are combined, the risk of developing cancer increases greatly. Tho se people who smoke and drink have a 15 times greater risk of developing oral cancer. Oral cancer can also be caused by having a family history of cancer, or in other words it can be hereditary. These people make up 25 percent of oral cancer victims who have never used tobacco and no other known risk factors. There are many different signs and symptoms involved with oral cancer. Although one of the real dangers of this cancer, is that in its early stages, it can go unnoticed. However a dentist or doctor can see or feel the precurs ...