HPV-associated dysplasia of the oral cavity is a precancerous change in the lining of the mouth caused by infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV). Dysplasia means the cells lining the mouth have started to grow and behave abnormally. It is not cancer, but over time, and without treatment, it can develop into a type of …
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An oral melanotic macule is a benign (non-cancerous), flat, pigmented spot in the lining of the oral cavity, the medical name for the mouth. It forms when a small area of the lining produces extra melanin, the brown pigment that gives color to skin and to the lining of the mouth. This extra pigment shows …
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The oral cavity is the medical name for the mouth. It includes the lips, gums, tongue, the inside of the cheeks, the floor of the mouth, and the roof of the mouth (the hard palate). When tissue is removed from any of these areas, a pathologist examines it under a microscope and describes what they …
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Hypertrophic candidiasis — also called chronic hyperplastic candidiasis — is a persistent fungal infection of the oral cavity caused by Candida species, most commonly Candida albicans. It produces thickened white patches on the lining of the mouth that cannot be wiped off — unlike simpler forms of oral thrush, where the white coating can be …
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Polymorphous adenocarcinoma is a slow-growing type of cancer that starts in the salivary glands. Unlike most other salivary gland cancers, it almost always starts in one of the small minor salivary glands found in the lining of the mouth and throat — most often in the palate (the roof of the mouth). The word “polymorphous” …
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Secretory carcinoma is a type of cancer that starts in the salivary glands — the glands that make saliva. It is one of the more recently described salivary gland cancers, and it has a few features that set it apart. First, it almost always carries the same specific change in its DNA — a fusion …
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A myoepithelioma is a non-cancerous type of salivary gland tumour. It is made up of specialized myoepithelial cells that are normally found in the salivary gland. This tumour should not be confused with the similarly named myoepithelioma that starts in soft tissue. Is myoepithelioma a type of cancer? No. Myoepithelioma is a benign (non-cancerous) type …
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Lichenoid mucositis is a pattern of inflammation in the lining of the mouth when immune cells attack oral mucosal cells. It is not cancer. It is not a precancerous condition on its own. In most cases, it represents an ongoing immune reaction — either to an autoimmune disease, a medication, or a contact substance — …
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A mucocele of the oral cavity, sometimes called a mucus cyst, is a common benign (non-cancerous) swelling in the lining of the mouth. It forms when mucus, the slippery fluid made by the small salivary glands in the mouth, leaks into the surrounding tissue and collects into a soft, fluid-filled bump. It is called a …
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Oral epithelial dysplasia is a precancerous change in the lining of the mouth. It develops in the epithelium, the thin surface layer of cells that covers the inside of the oral cavity and acts as a protective barrier. In dysplasia, the epithelial cells grow and mature abnormally: they vary in size and shape, divide more …
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