Oral cancer kills one person every hour, 24 hours a day in the United States

• The incidence of oral cancer will increase 11% in the United States in 2007

• Unlike several other cancers, the survival rate for oral cancer has remained unchanged for decades

• The overall 5-year survival rate for oral cancer is 52%, but when discovered early, it increases to 80%-90%

• Unfortunately, only 35% of oral cancer cases are diagnosed in the early stages WHY?  Because there have been few advances made in screening techniques and there are significant limitations inherent to white light and chemiluminescence light examination of the oral mucosa

• Pre-malignant changes actually start below the surface, at the basement membrane.  These changes may not be apparent to the naked eye until the disease progresses to the surface.

Fluorescence visualization technology is now available in OUR OFFICE.  Velscope is a revolutionary hand held device that provides dentists with an easy to use adjunctive mucosal examination system for early detection of abnormal tissue.

The Velscope handpiece emits a safe blue light into the oral cavity, which excites the tissue from the surface of the epithelium through to the basement membrane and into the stroma beneath, causing it to fluouresce.  The clinician is then able to immediately view the different fluorescence responses to help differentiate between norm and abnormal tissue.  In fact, Velscope is the only non-invasive adjunctive device clinically proven to help discover occult oral disease.  For more information, visit www.velscope.com or call our office.