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Mouth cancer

Overview

Mouth cancer is cancer that’s found anywhere in the mouth, including the gums, tongue, and lips.

Symptoms of mouth cancer can include a mouth ulcer that does not go away after 3 weeks, a red or white patch in the mouth, or a lump in the mouth.

It’s not always clear why mouth cancer happens, but it can be caused by genetic changes, your lifestyle, and some medical conditions.

Things you can do to lower your risk of mouth cancer include quitting smoking and drinking less alcohol.

The main tests for mouth cancer are removing and testing a sample of tissue from your mouth (biopsy), an X-ray and scans such as a CT scan.

Treatment for mouth cancer may include a combination of surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted medicines and immunotherapy.

If you have mouth cancer, you can get support from your specialist team and charities like the Mouth Cancer Foundation and Macmillan.

Page last reviewed: 01/01/1970
Next review due: 01/01/1970