An Ounce Of Prevention Is Worth A Pound Of Cure

Objectives: Advanced oral cancer and its sequele causes chronic pain, loss of function, and irreparable, socially disfiguring impairment. Of all procedures available to control oral cancers, none has affected survival as much as early detection. There are several methods of early detection that include visual examination by clinician, use of special blue die, different imaging modalities and measuring biochemical changes to normal cells. But self-examination is the easiest and convenient method for early detection of oral cancers. The aim of this study is to aware the general population of this disease, aetiological factors, common sites involved, premalignant lesions and how to catch it before it develops, by simple 8 steps of intra and extra oral self-examination for screening of oral cancers which will be described photographically.
Methods: Cancer literature searches were conducted using the term: self-examination, screening, early detection and oral cancer.Only those articles which were related with self examination for oral cancer screening were included.Additional articles were identified from key references within articles.
Results: PubMed searches and cochrane review revealed only a few studies which were related with self examination for oral cancer screening as compared to the studies found related to other cancers such as breast cancers, cervical cancers. Self examination by the patients will be an important tool for the early recognition of disease like oral cancer which has a very high mortality rate despite of advances in treatment.
Conclusions: We recommend simple 8 steps for self examination of oral cavity which may help the patient in early recognition of oral cancer, as prevention is better than cure.