Little common sense
Are you surprised to see this title? Does the tongue also get cancer? Yes, you will get cancer!
Nowadays, people pay attention to cancer on lung cancer, bowel cancer and other "high-incidence cancers", often do not know that there is a neglected "cancer" in the mouth - tongue cancer.
Let's share a case with you first
The patient, Mr. Wang, male, 52 years old, had no obvious induced sore throat before April, and the pain on the right side was more pronounced, which improved after anti-inflammatory treatment in the local hospital. In the days that followed, sore throat was always repeated and repeated, and medication could not be relieved. A month ago, he went to the hospital again, after laryngoscopy, found that there was a large area of ulceration at the base of the tongue, and there was secretion on the surface, after taking pathological examination, he was diagnosed with squamous epithelial cancer at the base of the tongue, and it was recommended that he go to a higher hospital for treatment.
Therefore, Mr. Wang came to our hospital from Jiangxi, and after outpatient examination, we admitted Mr. Wang to the hospital with "malignant tumor of tongue and enlarged lymph nodes in the neck".
After admission, a comprehensive examination found that the tumor invaded the tongue body in a large range, reaching 1/2, and the operation must expand the scope of primary resection as much as possible, and the tongue part other than the tumor should be removed and the cervical lymph nodes should be dissected. In order to ensure that Mr. Wang can swallow and speak normally after surgery, it is also necessary to reconstruct the tongue.
At this time, surgery is not only the technical scope of OTH, the difficulty and risk of surgery are high, and various complications may occur after surgery. After preoperative multidisciplinary consultation and discussion, Director Wang Xun and Dr. Wen Xiaohui of the Head and Neck Team formulated a rigorous surgical plan.
After completing all preoperative examinations and escorted by anesthesiologists, we performed "total resection of the tongue + cervical lymph node dissection + free flap transplantation repair of the forearm + anterolateral flap graft repair of the forearm" for the patient, and the whole operation was successfully completed after 8 hours of "hard work".
After the operation, Mr. Wang was successfully discharged from the hospital after careful care and treatment by medical staff. Two months later, Mr. Wang deliberately came to us from his hometown in Jiangxi for follow-up consultation, and now he can communicate with us normally and his swallowing function has been fully restored.
What is tongue cancer
01 Tongue Cancer!
Tongue cancer is a common malignancy of the oral and maxillofacial area, more male than female, mostly squamous cell carcinoma, common in the tongue margin, followed by the tip of the tongue, the back of the tongue and the abdomen of the tongue, etc. The mass located at the base of the tongue is often missed because it is more hidden.
02Who people are prone to tongue cancer?
1. People with poor oral hygiene.
2. People who smoke and drink and love to eat betel nuts. The patients we mentioned above have a history of smoking and drinking alcohol for 20 years, and the average amount of smoking is 70 cigarettes per day.
3. People who eat too hot and like spicy stimulation.
03What are the clinical manifestations of tongue cancer?
The main symptoms are tongue pain, tongue erosion, ulcers (up to a month or more without healing), or lumps. Cervical lymphomegaly often occurs early.
04 Treatment of tongue cancer
Surgery is the main means of treating tongue cancer, and early tongue cancer is mainly based on radiation therapy.
Why is tongue cancer often overlooked?
Because sore throat, inflammation, mouth ulcers, etc. are common clinical symptoms, they rarely attract special attention.
Here is a reminder that when there is an oral mucosal ulcer that does not heal for a long time, it needs your attention. Because there are a lot of bacteria in the mouth, mouth ulcers that have not improved for more than 2 weeks are very susceptible to infection and are at risk of developing oral or tongue cancer.
For friends with long-term oral problems, we should pay more attention to observation, if the wound at the ulcer is getting deeper and deeper, the pain will be alleviated, and when there is a lump with unclear edges, go to the hospital for examination in time.
How to prevent tongue cancer in daily life?
1． First of all, we must develop good living and eating habits, smoke alcohol, do not eat overheated food, and avoid smoked, fried, and irritating foods.
2． Pay attention to oral hygiene, keep the mouth moist, brush your teeth morning and evening, before going to bed, rinse your mouth after each meal, develop good oral hygiene habits, prevent caries, and deal with related problems in the mouth in a timely manner. Oral hygiene should be paid attention to, regularly go to regular stomatological hospitals for examination and treatment, and deal with stumps and crowns and poor repairs in the oral cavity in a timely manner.
3． Nutritionally balanced.
4． Regular physical examinations, oral physical examinations can not be ignored, especially for high-risk groups.
In short, once the oral odor, difficulty speaking, limited opening of the mouth, ulcers do not heal for a long time to affect eating, etc., you should go to a professional oral medical institution as soon as possible to achieve early detection, early diagnosis, and early treatment.
Author/Du Jingyan
Editor/Du Jingyan
Review/Zhou Mo