The inside of the mouth is normally lined with a special type of skin called mucosa. This is smooth and pinkish-red in appearance. Any changes in appearance should not be ignored as they may be a warning sign for a disease process. The most serious of these is oral cancer.
These changes can be detected on the lips, cheeks, palate, and gum tissue around the teeth, tongue, face and/or neck. Pain does not always occur with pathology and, curiously, is not often associated with oral cancer. However, any patient with facial and/or oral pain without an obvious cause or reason may also be at risk for oral cancer. Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons manage patients with benign and malignant cysts and tumors of the oral and facial region
