HPV, which is widely condemned, can actually cause oral cancer

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, people have always focused on the topic of infection prevention and control. During the large-scale vaccination, another virus has been frequently mentioned: HPV.

As we all know, HPV is the culprit of cervical cancer. Among the HPV-infected population, celebrities and ordinary people all eventually cannot escape the bad luck. Therefore, doctors are strongly advocating HPV vaccination and cervical cancer screening. However, HPV infection can cause more than just cervical cancer, there is also this problem, it is oral cancer!

01 What is oral cancer

Oral cancer is not a single type of cancer, but a general term for various cancers that occur in the oral cavity. It is essentially an epithelial malignant tumor that occurs in the oral and maxillofacial mucosal tissue. "Oral and maxillofacial mucosal tissue" refers to the mucosa of the cheeks, gums (and alveolar mucosa), palate, tongue, and floor of the mouth in a narrow sense, and also includes the mucosa of the lips and pharynx in a broad sense.

Although there are many pathological types of oral tumors, 90% are squamous cell carcinomas. Other uncommon or rare types include malignant melanoma, mucoepidermoid carcinoma, adenoid cystic carcinoma, etc.

02 Risk Factors for Oral Cancer

The risk factors for oral cancer include controllable factors and uncontrollable factors. Uncontrollable factors are genetic factors, while there are many controllable factors, including behavioral factors, environmental factors, biological factors and other factors.

Among behavioral factors, the most common ones are smoking and drinking. Betel quid chewing is also a risk factor, but only in certain groups.

Environmental factors mainly involve light radiation and nuclear radiation.

Infectious factors include fungal infection, viral infection and spirochete infection. Fungal infection is mainly Candida albicans infection, and viral infection includes HPV infection and EBV infection. EBV is also related to the occurrence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

How HPV infection affects oral cancer

It is now believed that HPV, especially HPV16 and HPV18, has been involved in certain oral tumors. HPV mainly attacks the Rb and p53 genes. Dr. Maura Gillison once studied 253 cases of head and neck tumors and found that 25% of the tumor tissues were HPV positive, and 90% of the HPV positive tissues were infected with HPV 16.

04 What can we do to prevent oral cancer?

To prevent oral cancer, we need to do the following: ① Actively improve lifestyle, such as quitting smoking, limiting alcohol, and not chewing betel nuts; ② Balance diet and nutrition, such as eating more vegetables and fruits and less red meat; ③ Protect against light radiation; ④ Eliminate local irritants, such as eliminating the sharp edges of teeth or dentures; ⑤ Maintain oral hygiene; ⑥ Improve mental state.

In addition, we also need to know the warning signs of oral cancer: ① Oral ulcers that have not healed for more than 2 weeks (excluding herpes-type and severe aphthous ulcers); ② White, red or dark spots on the oral mucosa; ③ Abnormal swelling or swollen lymph nodes in the mouth and neck; ④ Repeated oral bleeding for unknown reasons; ⑤ Unexplained numbness and pain in the face, throat and neck. Once the above situations occur, it is wise to see a doctor as soon as possible!