According to The Oral Cancer Foundation, someone dies from oral cancer every hour of every day in the United States alone. This cancer, found in the mouth, lips or throat, is often highly curable if diagnosed and treated early. Unfortunately, in its early stages, oral cancer can go unnoticed.

Those at high risk for oral cancer include tobacco users, African-American men and heavy drinkers, but anyone can develop oral cancer. According to the Oral Cancer Consortium, 25 percent of people diagnosed with oral cancer have no risk factors. Studies have also determined there may be a link between HPV (human papilloma virus) and oral cancer.

Your dentist and hygienist usually screen you for any signs of oral cancer at your regular checkups, but some symptoms of oral cancer can be invisible to the naked eye.

The FDA has recently approved a device to detect oral cancer called a VELscope. The VELscope is non-invasive and uses a bright blue light to emphasize any changes in the mouth that a dentist or hygienist could not normally see.

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VELscope’s fluorescence technology aids in the early visualization of mucosal diseases and enhances effective oral mucosal screening.

VELscope is a revolutionary hand-held device that now offers our office an easy-to-use adjunctive screening instrument for early detection of oral mucosa tissue changes. Its technology platform is based on the direct visualization of tissue fluorescence and the changes in fluorescence that result when abnormal tissue is present.

The VELscope Handpiece emits a safe blue light into the oral cavity, which excites the tissue beneath and at the surface and causes it to fluoresce. By utilizing special optical filters in the Handpiece, we are able to immediately view the different fluorescence responses of healthy vs. abnormal oral tissue. The healthy oral mucosal tissue will appear bright green while suspicious regions are identified by a loss of fluorescence, and will thus appear dark. VELscope provides a more effective oral cancer screening protocol with immediate benefits for our patients.

When used in combination with traditional oral cancer examination procedures, VELscope facilitates the discovery and visualization of mucosal abnormalities prior to surface exposure.