Jaw cancer is an unpleasant and dangerous disease that requires prompt treatment. Statistics show that 15% of all visits to dentistry are associated with various neoplasms originating from bone tissue. Not all of them are caused by the development of cancer cells. Only 1-2% are a sign of oncology. There is no specific age for this disease. Jaw cancer develops in both the elderly and infants. Treatment of the disease in this case has many difficulties, since large vessels and nerves are located in this zone. Each patient requires an individual approach.
Why the disease occurs
Cancer cells usually develop from spongy bone marrow, periosteum, neurogenic cells, vessels and odontogenic structures. The reasons for the development of this disease are not yet fully understood. However, experts have identified several main factors that cause jaw cancer to develop:
- Chronic injury. This includes a bruise, an incorrectly installed crown, filling, as well as a prosthesis that causes constant rubbing of the gums.
- Damage to the oral mucosa.
- Inflammatory process.
- Smoking.
- Ionizing radiation.
Jaw cancer: symptoms
Howrecognize an illness? At the initial stage, cancer proceeds without any signs. The first symptoms are:
- Numbness of the skin of the face.
- Bad breath and purulent nasal discharge.
- Headache.
- Pain in the lower or upper jaw for no apparent reason.
Similar symptoms can be signs of other ailments, such as neuritis, sinusitis, sinusitis, and so on. For an accurate diagnosis, the patient must undergo additional examination. In many cases, the possibility of timely cancer therapy is lost.
Other signs
When the sarcoma of the upper jaw, other symptoms gradually appear. Patients start complaining about:
- Swelling around the cheeks.
- Pain or numbness in teeth in close proximity to the growth.
- Loose teeth, which is a sign of osteoporosis.
- Increased alveolar processes.
- Curvature of the jaw and deformity of the face.
Jaw cancer, the symptoms of which are described above, can progress very quickly. As a result of the development of cancer cells, tissue edema often occurs, which ultimately leads to asymmetry. After that, patients begin to complain of severe pain.
Serious Consequences
Upper jaw cancer usually spreads to the eye area. Quite often tumors begin to germinate and cause the following consequences:
- Displacement of the eyeball.
- Wearing.
- Pathological fracture in the jaw area.
- Nosebleeds that recur for no reason.
- Headache radiating to forehead or temples.
- Pain in the ear area. This phenomenon occurs after involvement of the trigeminal nerve.
In addition to the above, the patient may experience small bleeding ulcers localized on the oral mucosa, gums, cheeks and other soft tissues. Often there is a violation of the opening and closing of the jaws. This makes eating difficult. A similar phenomenon indicates that the cancer has spread to the masseter and pterygoid muscle.
Mandibular cancer symptoms
Mandibular cancer is characterized by slightly different symptoms. This should include:
- Pain on palpation.
- Teeth falling out and loose.
- Discomfort and pain on contact with teeth.
- Bad breath.
- Bleeding sores on the oral mucosa.
- Numbness of the lower lip.
It is worth noting that a cancerous tumor located in the lower jaw develops quite quickly and is accompanied by pain, as well as rapid metastasis.
Diagnosis of pathology
Cancer of the jaw at an early stage is very difficult to diagnose due to non-specific symptoms. After all, the signs of the disease can be attributed to other ailments. Diagnosis of jaw cancer is carried out at the stage of metastases. manypatients are not alarmed by the symptoms described above. In addition, the disease can proceed for a long time without obvious signs. This complicates its early diagnosis.
X-ray allows to detect the disease. If cancerous neoplasms originate precisely from odontogenic material, then such an examination provides much more information than other methods. Thanks to the radiograph, the destruction of the septa and the expansion of periodontal fissures can be detected.
Images make it possible to see any changes: he althy teeth do not come into contact with the bone, the alveolar margin has fuzzy contours, the decalcification zone has spread to the jaw body, and so on.
Determine the disease by X-ray
So, how can you detect jaw cancer on an x-ray? Diagnosis of this disease is a complex process. X-ray allows you to determine the presence of pathology by the following signs:
- Bone destruction.
- Destruction of the sponge loops.
- Blurred contours of transitions of he althy bones to the area of destruction.
- Intertwining stripes formed as a result of the merger of several foci of destruction.
Other diagnostic methods
In addition to x-rays, jaw cancer, the photo of which is presented above, can be diagnosed in other ways. The patient must undergo a complete general clinical examination, including blood and urine tests, fluorography of the respiratory system. These studies make it possible to identify the presence of an inflammatory process in the body, acceleration oferythrocyte sedimentation, as well as anemia. Lung examination is required to rule out metastases.
Computed tomography of the sinuses is often used to diagnose jaw cancer. This allows you to determine the exact location of oncological neoplasms. In addition, tomography and scintigraphy are used. The specialist may prescribe an examination such as a puncture biopsy of the lymph node. This method allows you to determine metastasis.
The most accurate way to diagnose is a laboratory study of affected tissues. In some cases, trepanation of the jaw is required. If the tumor does not come from the bone, then the material can be taken from the hole formed after the extraction of the tooth.
Jaw cancer treatment
Patology therapy is complex. It includes not only surgery, but gamma therapy. Operations are being performed to remove the jaw. It can be exarticulation or resection. Chemotherapy can't treat jaw cancer because it doesn't work.
To begin with, the patient is subjected to gamma irradiation. It allows you to significantly reduce the size of the oncological neoplasm. Three weeks later, the jaw is removed. In some cases, more extensive surgery is required, which often includes orbital exenteration, lymphadenectomy, and debridement of the paranasal sinuses.
After surgery
A few years after the operation, an orthopedic correction is required, which allows you to hide all the defects. Spend it likeas a rule, using various bone plates and splints. Such procedures require patience from the patient, as in some cases it becomes necessary to restore swallowing and chewing functions, as well as speech.
It is worth noting that the restoration of the lower jaw is a very complex process that does not always end successfully. In such situations, stainless steel, tantalum, and plastic are often used to fix implants.
Forecast
Can jaw cancer come back? The prognosis in this case is disappointing, since relapse can occur within a few years after surgery. The five-year survival rate for this pathology is no more than 30%. With the detection of oncology in the later stages, this figure is significantly reduced. The percentage of five-year survival in this case is no more than 20%.
