Oral dysplasia

An oral dysplasia (or lesion) usually presents a patch of red, white, or mixed red and white skin on the lining inside your mouth.

They can occur on any part of the mouth lining, but are most commonly found on the cheek lining, tongue, or floor of the mouth. The lesions may be accompanied by pain or itching. 

Many patients don’t realise that they have lesions unless they are picked up at dental appointments. 

Some symptoms may indicate that an oral dysplasia has progressed to mouth cancer. These are:

• Firmness or thickening of the lesion (induration)
• Bleeding
• Ulceration
• Swelling.

At your appointment, your consultant will go through your current symptoms and medical history, before carrying out a physical examination of your mouth.

An oral dysplasia is formally diagnosed using a biopsy to examine the abnormal cells. The biopsy will take a small sample of tissue to be sent to a laboratory, for examination by a pathologist. 

Your dysplasia will be graded based on its severity. There are three grading categories: mild, moderate, and severe.

• Mild dysplasia has a less than 5% risk of developing into cancer
• Moderate dysplasia has a 3% – 15% risk of developing into cancer
• Severe dysplasia has a greater than 16% risk of developing into cancer.

Anyone can develop an oral dysplasia, but you may be more at risk if:

• You are a heavy smoker
• You drink a lot of alcohol
• You chew tobacco or betel nut.