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As my patient, you know how much I stress preventive dentistry and early detection of disease, whether it’s tooth decay, gum disease or oral cancer. Up until now, I had to rely mostly on tactile and un-aided visual exams, along with considering certain risk factors, to screen for oral cancer. I don’t know if you’re aware of the fact that oral cancer kills one person every hour, 24 hours a day in North America and the incidence rose 11% this year alone. Sadly, unlike several other cancers, the survival rate (which is only 52% over 5 years right now) has remained unchanged for decades. This is mostly because only 35% of oral cancer cases are diagnosed in the early stages. BUT when detected early, the survival rate increases to 80-90%!!
Pre-malignant changes start below the surface of the tissue, which may not be apparent to the naked eye until the disease progresses to the surface. The VELscope shows the dentist or hygienist changes in tissue fluorescence which can differentiate between normal and abnormal tissue. In fact, VELscope is the only non-invasive adjunctive device clinically proven to help discover occult oral disease. It only takes a minute or two for me to perform the exam with no discomfort to you.
Smoking, alcohol use and exposure to HPV (the Human Papilloma Virus) continue to be the biggest risk factors in developing oral cancer. But 25% of the oral cancer patients who were diagnosed in the past few years had NO risk factors at all. This means that everyone should be regularly screened, regardless of life style, medical history, or risk factors.
Because I feel so strongly about this, I am offering a complimentary VELscope screening to all patients who will be coming in for their hygiene visits before April 1, 2008. If you have recently been in for your hygiene visit and will be coming in for other dental work, please let us know when you verify your appointment if you would like me to perform the VELscope exam for you that day. Also, when you refer your friends, family, or co-workers, I will perform a complimentary VELscope exam for them on their new patient visit. Starting April 1, 2008, the charge for the VELscope exam will be $25 and an increasing number of insurance companies are recognizing the importance of and are covering the VELscope exam.
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